Surigao del Norte 2nd district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILABULLETIN)

Surigao del Norte 2nd district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers can't help but feel relieved and emboldened by United States (US) Secretary of State nominee Marco Rubio, who recently gave strong words against China’s "bullying" in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

“The stance taken by incoming US Secretary of State Senator Rubio against China’s aggression in the WPS serves as a warning against China’s continuing disrespect on the Philippines and Taiwan’s territory and sovereignty,” Barbers said in a statement Sunday, Jan. 19.

“Napakasarap malaman at marinig para sa ating mga Filipino na ang incoming US Secretary of State ay malalim ang kaalaman sa mga karumal-dumal na ginagawa ng China sa WPS laban sa Pilipinas at Taiwan at handa nila tayong tulungan sakaling may hindi magandang mangyari dito,” added the House quad-committee (quad-comm) overall chairman. 

(For us Filipinos, It's so good to know and hear that the incoming US Secretary of State has a deep knowledge on China’s appalling activities in the WPS against the Philippines as well as Taiwan, and that they are ready to help us in case something bad happens.)

Rubio slammed China’s “deeply destabilizing” actions in the WPS, which he said could prompt the US to “counteract” should Beijing carry out “anything rash or irrational” against the Philippines or Taiwan. 

Rubio, who testified before a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on his nomination to be Secretary of State on Capitol Hills, Washington DC, last Jan.15 discouraged China from carrying out “anything rash or irrational” when it comes to the Philippines or Taiwan if it is serious about stabilizing US-China relations. 

He warned that if, “God forbid,” any “miscommunication” or some “inadvertent conflict” emerges out of China’s bullying and other forms of aggressions in the WPS, the US would be forced to defend the Philippines as its treaty ally, and its impact would have on the entire globe would be enormous, “and that includes Europe".

Aside from firing water cannons and sideswiping, shadowing and other forms of harassments against Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) patrol ships and local fishermen in the WPS for the past two years, China naval ships and personnel continues to encroach inside the country’s 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Rubio, during the US Senate hearing, cited as an example of the latest China harassment in the WPS the deployment of its 165-meter long coast guard vessel dubbed as “monster ship” near Zambales. 

“The actions they (China) are taking now are deeply destabilizing; they are forcing us to take counteractions because we have commitments to the Philippines and we have commitments to Taiwan that we intend to keep,” the former senator from Florida said.

“If they want to destabilize the relationship or they want to at least create some pathway for stabilization of our relationship with them, they really need to stop messing around with Taiwan and with the Philippines because it’s forcing us to focus our attention in ways we prefer not to have to.”

In the same hearing, Rubio emphasized Manila’s “strategic importance” to Washington, not only from a military perspective but also over the “real economic opportunities” it could explore with the country.

He also acknowledged the Philippine government’s “welcoming attitude” in recent years to further boost engagement with the US. “When your engagement with a country leads to economic development—whether it’s outbound US investment in the Philippines or what have you—then that becomes enduring.” 

A July 2016 arbitration ruling by The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)  had invalidated China’s claims in the WPS, particularly its expansive nine-dash line claim over practically the entire South China Sea. 

China did not participate in the proceedings and has consistently rejected the ruling.