China ‘Tails’ Four-Nation Exercise In South China Sea

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

MANILA (Worthy News) – Maritime saber-rattling continued in disputed South China Sea waters Thursday after the Philippines said three Chinese navy ships “tailed” a joint military exercise it began with three Western allies.

The two-day exercise by the Philippines, the United States, Canada, and Australia was the first exercise by the four nations.

It followed the first Philippines-Japan joint exercise in the South China Sea last week, signaling to Beijing that several nations will not tolerate its perceived military posturing.

Southeast Asian states reject China’s claim on 90 percent of the water, which is rich in fishing stocks, is believed to have oil and gas deposits, and sees $3 trillion of annual trade transit.

The South China Sea is disputed by China, the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei.

Those tensions surfaced Wednesday with the Philippines military saying three Chinese navy vessels had “tailed” the four-nation exercise.

‘ILLEGAL ENCROACHMENT’

China’s military later said it had only organized a combat patrol near the Scarborough Shoal area, which Manila calls Bajo de Masinloc and China refers to as Huangyan Island.

However, the Philippines military maintained, “Aside from the usual illegal encroachment and presence of Chinese maritime militia vessels, we have not monitored any purported exercise or combat patrols.”

Manila and Beijing have recently clashed in the area, accusing each other of aggressive behavior and damaging the marine environment. Several collisions and confrontations have occurred on the water.

Christians in the Philippines told Worthy News they pray that no war will break out between the two Asian nations.

In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague said China’s extended claims on the South China Sea had no legal basis, a decision Beijing has rejected.

The latest standoff added to regional unrest with China’s military increasingly active around Taiwan, the democratically ruled island nation that Beijing claims as its own.

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