The government will not risk agitating China by sending its World War II warship beyond Scarborough Shoal off Zambales, Malacañang said Monday.
Responding to warnings in the Senate, Communications Secretary Ramon Carandang said the deployment of BRP Rajah Humabon was not meant to exacerbate tensions with China over the disputed Spratly Islands.
“No, it’s not going beyond our waters and I think we have a sovereign right to take our vessels and travel within our territory anytime we want to. I do not view this as an agitation and I don’t think the Chinese would view it as an agitation either,” Carandang told reporters.
Besides, the diplomatic dispute with China over the Spratly Islands is being addressed at all levels, he said.
Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile had cautioned the government against agitating China by conducting patrols beyond the Scarborough Shoal and into disputed territorial waters.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines dispatched Humabon to Scarborough Shoal after China deployed the Haixun-31, a helicopter-equipped 3,000-ton maritime patrol ship, on a voyage that will see it passing through the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).
The deployment of the 1,300-ton destroyer, the Philippines’ only warship acquired in December 1978, followed exchanges between Beijing and Manila over incursions by Chinese aircraft into Philippine territory near the potentially oil-rich Spratlys.
Responding to Enrile’s call for the convening of the National Security Council to tackle the dispute, Carandang said this was up to the Cabinet security cluster to decide.
In his nearly 12 months in office, Mr. Aquino has not convened the council.
Carandang disagreed with Enrile’s call that presidential spokespersons like himself refrain from talking about the Spratlys and let the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) handle the matter.
“We’re not trying to agitate the situation. If you listen to what Secretary Edwin Lacierda and I and Undersecretary Abigail Valte have been saying about these issues with regard to West Philippine Sea, we’ve been very deliberate. We’ve been very nuanced in our statements. Perhaps, once in a while, some of our points are lost in translation,” he said.
“We respect the opinion of Senator Enrile. If you look at it, the DFA is really the lead agency in speaking on the West Philippine Sea. But we can’t avoid questions about what the government is doing, and we feel it’s our duty to explain this to the public,” he said.
Carandang also wondered about the silence of left-leaning groups on the Spratlys issue.
“We’re talking about the country’s sovereignty here. We’re talking about the country’s territory. The usually loud protesters are surprisingly quiet,” he said.