China's top diplomat in Manila has called on the Philippines to oppose the supposed "Taiwan independence" by not giving American troops access to Philippine military bases as he claimed that the latter was only taking advantage of the situation in the Taiwan strait through military expansion.
According to Ambassador Huang Xilian, the Philippines must do that if it "care[s] genuinely about the 150,000 OFWs (overseas Filipino workers)" in Taiwan.
Huang made the call as he said that "some tried to find excuse for the new EDCA (Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement) sites by citing the safety of the 150,000 OFWs in Taiwan, while China is the last country that wishes to see conflict over the Strait because people on both sides are Chinese."
In their remarks, the lead Filipino and American officials in EDCA talks, only said the expansion of EDCA sites would allow the interoperability of Filipino and American forces in their response not only to external attacks but also to natural disasters.
Photo courtesy of Amb. Huang Xilian's Facebook page
But for Huang, "facts speak louder than words."
"Obviously, the US intends to take advantage of the new EDCA sites to interfere in the situation across the Taiwan Strait to serve its geopolitical goals and advance its anti-China agenda at the expense of peace and development of the Philippines and the region at large," he said in his message at the 8th Manila Forum that tackled handling difference between the Philippines and China on Friday.
"Peace across the Taiwan Strait is under threat and faces severe challenges. The root cause of the tensions across the Taiwan Strait is the 'Taiwan independence' forces colluding with the US. The US has obdurately attempted to contain China by exploiting the Taiwan question," he explained.
Huang said the Philippines must "soul search" about the pronouncements of some Filipino people about the proximity of EDCA sites to Taiwan.
"To know if increased US military deployment in another country truly helps to protect the host country’s sovereignty and security, one just need to take a look at the long list of mess left behind by the scourge of American military around the world, the turmoils, divisions and devastation," he said.
"Answers will not be difficult to find," he added.