Determinado ang AFP na protektahan ang maritime domain ng Pilipinas sa harap ng panibagong batas sa China na pinapahintulutan ang kanilang coast guard na paputukan ang mga banyagang vessel sa pinagtatalunang karagatan.
“We will be, as we have always been, resolute in protecting our maritime domain —regardless of what laws other countries may pass,” saad ni AFP spokesperson MGen. Edgard Arevalo sa isang pahayag.
“We will pursue our constitutional mandate and consistently assert our sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea,” dagdag nito.
Pahayag ito ng AFP makaraang maglabas ng kanilang pagkabahala ang Estados Unidos sa bagong pasang coast guard law ng China.
“[T]he United States joins the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan, and other countries in expressing concern with China’s recently enacted coast guard law, which may escalate ongoing territorial and maritime disputes,” wika ni US State Department spokesperson Ned Price.
“We are specifically concerned by language in the law that expressly ties the potential use of force, including armed force by the China Coast Guard, to the enforcement of China’s claims in ongoing territorial and maritime disputes in the East and South China Seas,” dagdag nito.
Kamakailan nang mag-deploy ng dagdag na naval assets ang militar sa West Philippine Sea para pangalagaan ang mga mangingisdang Pinoy sa gitna ng bagong batas ng Beijing.
