菲律賓告訴中國它不會放棄在有爭議的珊瑚礁上的淺灘

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

Philippines tells China it will not abandon post in disputed reef

Updated Mon, August 7, 2023 at 4:47 a.m. PDT

By Neil Jerome Morales and Albee Zhang

BEIJING/MANILA (Reuters) -The Philippines told China it will not abandon a disputed shoal in the South China Sea after it accused China's coast guard of using water cannons and "dangerous" moves to prevent Manila from sending supplies to its troops occupying the reef.

Likening the Aug. 5 incident to a "David vs Goliath situation", Jonathan Malaya, a senior Philippine National Security Council (NSC) official said China's increased presence at the Second Thomas Shoal will not deter the Philippines' resolve to protect its position there.

"We will never abandon Ayungin Shoal," Malaya said, using its local name, as he dismissed China's call for Manila to remove its warship from the atoll, which was intentionally grounded in 1999 to reinforce the Philippines' sovereignty claims.

"We will continue to resupply troops in the grounded vessel as long as it takes," Malaya said in a joint news conference with the military, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and foreign ministry.

"It is our right to bring what is necessary to maintain the station and to be sure that our troops there are properly provisioned."

China said it had earlier told Manila not to send ships to the shoal and not to send "construction materials used for large-scale repair and reinforcement" to the warship after it learned of this recent supply plan, the Chinese coast guard said in a statement on Monday.

China's Foreign Ministry said that the Philippines' move violated China's sovereignty and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. It said the vessel was stopped in "accordance with the law."

It detailed a statement from the U.S. State department on the issue, which it said attacked China's legitimate maritime rights protection and law enforcement actions and endorsed the Philippines' "illegal provocative behavior, which China firmly opposes."

China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, an assertion rejected internationally, while Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei, Taiwan and the Philippines have various claims to certain areas.

The Chinese Coast Guard's use of water cannons on Saturday was not the first, as it also sprayed water at Manila's boats on a mission to supply food and water, for a handful of troops living aboard the rusty warship on Nov. 2021.

China's latest actions, which the Philippine military described as "excessive", undermine efforts to strengthen trust between Manila and Beijing, and underlines the "dire need" for a code of conduct, the foreign ministry's spokesperson said.

Ties between the Philippines and China have grown tense under Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, with Manila pivoting back to its traditional ally, the United States, which has expressed its support for Manila and accused China of "threatening regional peace and stability."

Marcos said his country had relayed its complaint to the Chinese Ambassador in Manila, whom the foreign ministry had summoned.

No one was hurt during the Aug. 5 incident at the shoal, but one of the two Philippine boats, which were transporting supplies, failed to complete its mission.

(Reporting by Albee Zhang in Beijing and the Beijing newsroom, Farah Master in Hong Kong and Neil Jerome Morales in Manila; Writing by Karen Lema; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

Translation

北京/馬尼拉（路透社） - 菲律賓指責中國海岸警衛隊使用高壓水槍和“危險”舉動阻止馬尼拉向佔領該礁的軍隊運送物資後，告訴中國，它不會放棄南海有爭議的淺灘。 。

菲律賓國家安全委員會(NSC)高級官員Jonathan Malaya 將8月5日的事件比作“以弱勝強”，他表示，中國在仁愛礁增加的出現,不會阻止菲律賓決心保護那地方的立場。

Malaya用當地的灘名字說道: “我們永遠不會放棄Ayungin 淺灘” ，他拒絕了中國要求馬尼拉將其軍艦從該環礁上撤走的呼籲。該島於1999年故意擱淺，以加強菲律賓的主權主張。

Malaya在與軍方、菲律賓海岸警衛隊和外交部舉行的聯合新聞發布會上表示： “只要需要，我們將繼續向擱淺的船隻補給部隊。”

“我們有權攜帶維持該駐守站所需的物品，並確保我們在那裡的部隊得到適當的補給。”

中國海警週一在一份聲明中表示，中國在獲悉近期的供應計劃後，已告知馬尼拉不要派遣船隻前往該淺灘，也不要向該軍艦運送 “用於大規模維修和加固的建築材料”。

中國外交部表示，菲律賓此舉侵犯了中國主權，違反了《南海各方行為宣言》，並稱攔截該船是“依法做出來的”。

中國詳細介紹了美國國務院就此問題發表的聲明，稱該聲明攻擊了中國正當的海洋維權和執法行動，並支持菲律賓的 “非法挑釁行為，中方對此堅決反對”。

中國聲稱對幾乎整個南海擁有主權，但這一主張遭到了國際社會的拒絕，而馬來西亞、越南、文萊、台灣和菲律賓則對某些地區提出了不同的主權主張。

中國海警週六使用高壓水槍並不是第一次，2021 年 11 月，中國海警還向馬尼拉一艘船隻噴水，因為它向一艘生鏽軍艦上的少數部隊提供食物和水。

菲外交部發言人表示，中國的最新行動被菲律賓軍方形容為“過度”，破壞了馬尼拉和北京之間加強信任的努力，並突顯了“迫切需要”制定行為準則。

在菲律賓總統小馬可斯的領導下，菲律賓和中國之間的關係變得緊張，馬尼拉轉向傳統的美國，美國表達了對馬尼拉的支持，並指責中國“威脅地區和平與穩定”。

小馬可斯表示，他的國家已將其投訴轉達給中國駐馬尼拉大使，外交部已召見了他。

8月5日的淺灘事件中沒有人員受傷，但兩艘運送物資的菲律賓船隻中的一艘未能完成任務。

So, the Philippines tells China it will not abandon a disputed shoal in the South China Sea. Ties between the Philippines and China have grown tense. China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, and this claim forces Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to turn back to its traditional ally, the United States.