Rubio underscores South China Sea situation caused by big Chinese ship
As China's ''Monster'' ship continues to move closer to the Philippines coast, United States Senator and Secretary of State-designate Marco Rubio emphasized the global impact of a conflict that might emerge due to China's illegal activities in the South China Sea.
"Say it's the Philippines. Okay, in the last 48 hours, there's this massive, I don't even know how to describe it, but this massive ship that the Chinese have built that's like headed towards the Philippines, and the Philippines feels threatened by it, rightfully so," Rubio said in his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday.
"We've seen this on a daily basis with the harassment and so forth, but on a daily basis, if, God forbid, there is some miscommunication or some inadvertent conflict emerges there, and we have obligations to them, the impact that will have on the entire globe, the impact that it will have on the entire globe is enormous, and that includes Europe," he added.
Amid calls to withdraw its Coast Guard ship from the exclusive economic zone of the country, China's ''Monster'' ship is patrolling closer to the coast of Zambales province.
The Philippine Coast Guard said the ''Monster'' ship, which has a length of 165 meters, is around 60 to 70 nautical miles from the coastline from Saturday's 97 nautical miles away from the Zambales coast.
In a press conference last Tuesday, National Security Council spokesman Jonathan Malaya expressed alarm over the illegal presence of a CCG vessel that is moving closer to the western coastline of the country.
National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela said the PCG's Offshore Patrol Vessel, BRP Gabriela Silang, is overseeing the big China Coast Guard vessel off the coast of Zambales.
"Throughout the day, the movements of the China Coast Guard vessel have not been continuous or expeditious, failing to meet the necessary criteria for exercising the right of innocent passage," Tarriela said on Wednesday night.
"In response, BRP Gabriela Silang has effectively maintained a protective position through skillful seamanship, successfully keeping the China Coast Guard at an average distance of 60-70 nautical miles from the Philippine coastline," he added.
Tarriela explained that despite CCG's allegation through a radio challenge that BRP Gabriela Silang's actions is a violation of the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 (COLREGs), its close maneuver to the ''Monster'' ship is "vital to prevent it from approaching forward the Zambales coast."
The Philippines and Chinese diplomats are expected to discuss the situation, especially the recent or ongoing developments in the region during the resumption of their bilateral consultation mechanism (BCM) in Xiamen on Thursday (Jan. 16). Robina Asido/DMS
