Philippines refuses to call out China amid bomber in South China Sea

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government on Monday reiterated that diplomatic actions have been taken to address China's aggression in the South China Sea.

The Philippines, however, has not publicly expressed condemnation nor concern toward China's behavior in the contested waterway.

Last Friday, China's People's Liberation Army Air Force announced that it has landed an H-6K bomber on Woody Island, Beijing's largest base in the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea.

Chinese bombers including the H-6K conduct takeoff and landing training on an island reef at a southern sea area pic.twitter.com/ASY9tGhfAU

— People's Daily,China (@PDChina) May 18, 2018

The Department of Foreign Affairs said that the government is closely monitoring the developments in the South China Sea, part of which is the West Philippine Sea.

"While appropriate language, whether expressions of condemnation or concern, over certain developments are clearly conveyed through diplomatic channels, it is not our policy to publicize every action taken by the Philippine Government whenever there are reported developments taking place in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea," the DFA said in a statement.

The government stressed its commitment to protect every single inch of the country's territory and areas where the Philippines has sovereign rights.

The DFA added that it is taking a "different approach" on the matter to "avoid any drawbacks and challenges."

"Fighting for our rights under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and under our present strategy, we intend to achieve much more, including, but not limited to, an effective comprehensive Code of Conduct that will promote peace, cooperation, and stability in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea," the DFA said.

The Aquino administration pursued an arbitration against Beijing's nine-dash line claim before the United Nations-backed tribunal. In 2016, the arbitral tribunal issued a landmark ruling in favor of the Philippines, invalidating China's historic claim over the disputed waters.

The Duterte administration set aside the ruling and opted to conduct a bilateral consultation mechanism in an attempt to strengthen relations with Beijing.

President Rodrigo Duterte earlier insisted that trouble would ensue if the Philippines would insist on its maritime claims in the South China Sea.

"You know, if you insist, there will be trouble. To the Chinese, what does it mean to you? War. What will we arm ourselves with if there’s a war? Will we resort to slapping each other?" Duterte said over the weekend.

The United States, meanwhile, has called for an increase in military presence in the Indo-Pacific region in response to China's militarization of the South China Sea.

Admiral Philip Davidson, incoming chief of the US Pacific Command, warned that China is now capable of controlling the South China Sea in "all scenarios short of war with the United States."