There is growing pressure from China to push the Philippines to cede its sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
This was revealed by Department of National Defense (DND) Sec. Gilberto Teodoro Jr. during the inaugural Australia-Philippines Defence Ministers’ Meeting in Canberra on Tuesday, Nov. 12.
“What we see is an increasing demand by Beijing for us to concede our sovereign rights in the area because of our need to explore and exploit the resources in these areas for the benefit of our own people,” he said in a press conference after the meeting with Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles.
“And that is clear, we don't need to enter into a geopolitical nexus for determining the root cause of the problem, because we are direct victims of Chinese aggression in this and in a concentrated area so far, thus far, in the West Philippine Sea,” he added.
Last week, President Marcos Jr. enacted two new maritime laws to strengthen the country’s capability to defend its maritime territory.
The Philippine Maritime Zones Act (Republic Act No. 12064) clarifies the country’s jurisdiction over its contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone, protecting resources in areas up to 24 nautical miles from the baselines.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act ensures sovereignty by designating routes for foreign military vessels and registered aircraft to pass through, in line with international agreements. It establishes a system of sea lanes and air routes for foreign vessels and aircraft.
Despite this, the Philippine Navy said it monitored 29 Chinese vessels in some contested features in the WPS in October.
Teodoro said the Philippines is implementing a “whole of government” approach to address China’s continued incursion.
“On my end, my mission at this time in the state of defense development of the Philippines is to steel up our internal processes, our human capital capabilities and our capabilities to have a credible deterrent force in the Armed Forces of the Philippines and our defense establishment and the security establishment,” Teodoro said.
The defense chief noted that the Philippines is also beefing up its alliances with allied and friendly nations, like Australia, to deter China’s illegal activities in the South China Sea.
China is claiming majority of the South China Sea, a key and vital trade route that carries a significant portion of the world's maritime trade, despite a 2016 arbitral ruling which invalidated its dash-line claims in the said waters.
“Although they claim to act under the ages of international law, everybody knows that what they're doing is contrary to the tenets of international law. And the biggest evidence and biggest proof of this is that nobody has actually supported their actions or activities in the West Philippine Sea, in the South China Sea, and a lot of condemnation they have earned from what they're doing there,” Teodoro said.
Aside from territorial row, Teodoro said the Philippines is also combatting malign influence of Chinese nationals in the illegal economies in the Philippines, in proliferation of criminal activity, fake citizenships and the like.
“I'm not saying that there's an overt connection, but what I'm saying is Chinese nationals are involved, and for us to make an assumption that there is no connection, means to say we are not doing our job as security officials,” he said.
Stronger PH-Australia ties
In a separate statement on Wednesday, Nov. 12, the DND said that Teodoro and Marles reiterated their commitment to further strengthen the Manila and Canberra’s defense and military partnerships.
“The principals [Teodoro and Marles] looked forward to the second iteration of Exercise Alon in 2025, which would be an opportunity to increase complexity and enhance the interoperability between our armed forces.[Teodoro] confirmed the Philippines would participate in Exercise Talisman Sabre next year for the first time, whilst [Marles] reaffirmed Australia’s continued participation in Exercise Balikatan and inaugural participation in Exercise Salaknib next year,” DND spokesperson Asst.Sec. Arsenio Andolong said.
“The principals agreed to develop and sign in 2025 a new arrangement outlining the direction and management of official dialogues, training, leadership development, and infrastructure under the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Program,” he said.