(From left to right) President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr., US President Joe Biden, and Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (PCO)

House Assistant Majority Leader and La Union 1st district Rep. Paolo Ortega expects the inaugural trilateral summit between the United States (US), Japan, and the Philippines to help de-escalate the tension in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

“We hope that with this trilateral summit, the heightened tensions in the WPS will be reduced, if not totally stopped,” Ortega said in a statement on Friday, April 12.

The historic three-nation meeting was presided over at the White House in Washington, DC. It featured President Marcos, Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and US President Joe Biden.

“This is a step in the right direction. We need all the support we can get from our usual allies in the international community,” reckoned Ortega.

According to the lawmaker, the meeting will help provide much-needed stability and peace in the Into-Pacific region amid repeated incursions of China in the WPS.

He cited the recent “unprovoked action” of China, wherein Philippine resupply vessels were blasted with water cannons. 

“We also need them to guide us how to deal with such a recurring problem, since China has been doing this despite our complaints,” he said, referring to the US and Japan.

Ortega, a member of the so-called "Young Guns" of the House of Representatives, says he is hoping that this latest dialogue of the international allies will persuade the Asian giant to back off from encroaching on Philippine territory.

“We cannot afford to just let their vessels block our ships and prevent our fishermen from getting their daily livelihood in our very own shores. That is simply not fair, to say the least,” the young solon remarked.

Despite losing its case against the Philippines in the 2016 arbitration case on the WPS issue, China has repeatedly intruded into the former’s 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Ortega emphasized that the trilateral summit could be a permanent avenue moving forward, wherein allies can discuss ways to mitigate incidents in the disputed waters.

He pointed out that these altercations “get in the way” of Filipino fishermen and the government’s resupply mission team.