Diplomats and representatives from the militaries and coast guards of the United States, Japan and the Philippines agreed this week they prefer a peaceful settlement of ongoing Chinese aggression in the South China Sea. The trilateral maritime dialogue took place Tuesday against a backdrop of clashes involving Philippine and Chinese vessels in disputed territory. In a joint statement after the Tokyo meeting, the U.S. and Japan expressed support for the Philippines’ efforts toward a peaceful settlement of the disputes. They reiterated their expectation that Beijing comply with a 2016 international court ruling against its claim to virtually the entire South China Sea. The three-nation partnership benefits from consensus on Capitol Hill about “the challenges we face and the need to work closely with our partners as we address that,” Mira Rapp-Hooper, director for East Asia and Oceania at the U.S. National Security Council, said at the meeting. The U.S. is “concerned about China’s aggressive and unlawful behavior in the South China Sea which undermines international law, including the freedoms of navigation and overflight,” she said. The three nations were eager for an in-depth discussion about the South China Sea, Ryo Nakamura, director of the southeast and southwest Asian affairs department at Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at the start of the meeting. Last week, a Chinese coast guard ship fired a water cannon at a Philippine fisheries patrol vessel in the disputed waterway, the state-run Philippine News Agency reported Tuesday. It’s the latest in a series of similar incidents in the past two years. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ruled out sending a navy ship to the area, noting that his country is not at war and would not escalate tensions. Marcos, according to the news agency, told reporters in Pampanga that the government would continue protecting fishermen and the country’s territory.
“We don’t need navy warships,” Marcos said. “All we are doing is resupplying our fishermen, protecting our territorial rights.” China will continue to safeguard its sovereignty, rights and interests, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Tuesday in remarks reported by the Reuters news agency. “The recent maritime incidents between China and the Philippines are entirely caused by the Philippines’ persistent infringement and provocation,” spokesperson Mao Ning told a regular news conference. The Philippines has proposed to host a second maritime dialogue involving the three nations next year.
