Acquisition of jets not related to China row, Defense says

MANILA, Philippines -  The Defense department on Tuesday maintained that the acquisition of fighter jets from South Korea has nothing to do with the territorial row in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

“This (acquisition) has been planned even before the developments in the West Phil Sea,” Defense department spokesman Peter Galvez said in a phone interview.

Galvez was asked for a reaction after a Japanese paper reported on Monday that China had asked South Korea not to sell FA-50 jets to the country.

Galvez declined to comment on the report itself but maintained that the military’s upgrade efforts are not related to the territorial row with China.

The Defense department previously said that the lead-in fighter jets acquisition project would boost the territorial defense capabilities of the country.

Officials, however, stressed that the modernization program is not directed towards any country.

The government plans spend P18.9-billion to acquire 12 FA-50 jets from South Korea.

Air Force chief Lt. Gen. Lauro Catalino dela Cruz previously said the negotiations with the Korea Aerospace Industries started last month. Two jets could be delivered by the end of 2014 if all the contracts and other necessary documents are signed this year.

Earlier, South Korean paper The Chosunilbo quoted a Yomuiri Shimbun report as saying that Beijing had asked Seoul not to sell jets to the Philippines.

The report said China made the request ahead of a summit in Seoul between President Park Geun-hye and President Aquino on Oct. 17.

South Korea reportedly declined to yield to China’s request, saying it cannot accept "interference" in arms exports.

"The Philippines is engaged in a territorial dispute with China over the Spratly Islands, and that appears to be why Beijing protested several times through the Chinese Embassy and other channels," The Chosunilbo quoted an unnamed South Korean official as saying.

The paper said the sale of the fighter jets will push through, with no less than Park urging a speedy signing of the contract.

"Every time the Korean or Filipino media reported on the FA-50 sale, China reacted sensitively trying to confirm the reports through diplomatic channels," an unnamed government source told The Chosunilbo.

China claims virtually the entire West Philippine Sea while the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam and Taiwan also have overlapping claims in the area.

It has been shoring up its naval patrols in disputed areas to assert its territorial claims, triggering concerns among other claimants in the region.

The Philippines has described China’s territorial claims as “excessive” and “exaggerated” and wants the dispute addressed through international law.