Carpio: China still after Philippines’ exclusive economic zone

Chinese structures and buildings on the man-made Subi Reef at the Spratlys chain of islands are seen from the Philippine-claimed Thitu Island off the disputed South China Sea in western Philippines Friday, April 21, 2017. Philippine Defense Secretray Delfin Lorenzana, Armed Forces Chief Gen. Eduardo Ano and other officials flew to the Thitu Island Friday to assert the country’s claim to the heartland of a disputed area where China is believed to have added missiles on man-made islands.   (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

MANILA, Philippines – “China is still after our exclusive economic zone.”

Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio issued this warning on Thursday, noting that China’s seemingly slow march towards the contested areas of West Philippine Sea is “just temporary.”

“The intention of China is very clear. They want to control the West Philippine Sea,” Carpio said during a Foreign Correspondent Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) forum in Makati City.

Carpio, who was a member of the Philippine panel who won Manila’s arbitration case against China’s expansive claims in the West Philippine Sea in 2016, claimed that the Philippines must bear in mind that China’s intention from the very beginning was to “grab our EEZ.”

“They may slow down for a while, but they will continue to march towards that objective,” Carpio said.

“There may be hiccups, but those are just temporary. China is still after our EEZ,” he added.

Carpio also said that the Chinese government is teaching its people “false narratives” about the West Philippine Sea.

READ: Carpio: China teaches ‘false’ West Philippine Sea narratives to its students

During the Aquino administration, the government won its maritime dispute before the United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration.

The tribunal cited the exclusive economic zones provided for in the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Seas (Unclos) which goes against the so-called nine-dash claim of China.

China, however, refused to acknowledge the ruling.

The Duterte administration, meanwhile, has also maintained a soft stance on the issue and even pushed for joint maritime exploration with Beijing. /gsg