PCG seeks more visits from US, Japan counterparts

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Coast Guard has invited its US and Japan counterparts to make frequent visits to the country and conduct regular maritime exercises in territorial waters to demonstrate their commitment as allies to help keep the West Philippine Sea free, safe and secure.

In a statement, the PCG said the US and the Japan coast guards were among the first to reaffirm their adherence to keeping regional waters secure in the face of China’s growing aggressiveness in staking claims in almost the entire South China Sea.

The PCG, the US Coast Guard and the Japan Coast Guard voiced their commitment at the 21st  Shangri-La Dialogue defense summit in Singapore from May 31 to June 2 organized by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). The security conference was held against the backdrop of China’s imposing a fishing ban in the South China Sea until Sept. 16.

Beijing had also directed its coast guard to detain for 60 days without trial any foreign “trespassers” in areas that it claims are within its territorial waters.

At the conference, PCG Commandant Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan urged the USCG and the JCG to develop new ways to address emerging new threat in the high seas, including China’s restrictions on the movement of foreign vessels on its “self-declared boundaries.”

PCG spokesman Rear Admiral Armand Balilo explained that it was within such context that they requested the USCG and the JCG to “have more frequent visits to the Philippines and to participate in more maritime exercises with the PCG.”

Balilo admitted the PCG has yet to “work out the details” of its coordination or cooperation with the USCG and the JCG.

“But the good thing about this is that the USCG and the JCG agreed. All three coast guard organizations are moving toward one direction,” Balilo said.

The JCG, meanwhile, has recognized the PCG’s “courageous and law-abiding stance” in the face of constant harassment from China and proposed the conduct of more personnel exchanges to create a robust network of coast guard bodies devoted to strict maritime law enforcement in accordance with the rule of law.

The USCG, for its part, would reportedly deploy its North Pacific assets to support the PCG while emphasizing the need for the conduct of further training, development of dynamic tactics and procedures, and preparing ships for countering evolving threats in the high seas.

The PCG, JCG and USCG have also agreed to pursue capacity-building initiatives to strengthen their people-to-people relationship and better synchronize Coast Guard doctrines on the ground.

Gavan also hailed the USCG and the JCG for being “reliable partners” and assured them that the PCG “is doing its share in the alliance we nurture.”

Gavan is reportedly conceptualizing a plan to coordinate with other agencies that would enable the PCG “to send ships further out” to provide better security to Filipino fishermen. 

“I’d like to propose greater deployment in the high seas. We will do our part, but we also need you to be there to maintain rules-based order the way Coast Guards should play their role,” Gavan said.

“We know our limits, but we know we can do something to give time for our political leaders to do their part to keep the West Philippine Sea as free as it should be,” he added.

Seizure illegal

Meanwhile, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. described as illegal China’s seizure of airdropped supplies meant for Filipino troops stationed on the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal.

He said it is up to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to file a complaint against China over the incident, which took place on May 19, but which came to light only recently.

“Definitely this is illegal, this action of getting our, confiscating our supplies is illegal as something like this is not done in the international order,” he told reporters.

“You are not supposed to confiscate the supplies of another country even in war, usually the adversaries would allow food supplies and medicines to pass through for humanitarian reasons, so again that is illegal,” Brawner stressed.

He said the May 19 resupply mission by airdrop was not announced and even the parties involved had no prior information about the operation.

“Instead of bringing our ship to the Second Thomas Shoal or Ayungin Shoal, this time we decided to airdrop our supplies so we did four sorties or four rounds of resupply. We were able to recover three of them. Unfortunately one of the packages was intercepted by the Chinese,” he revealed.

“And as you saw in the video, when the second package resupply package was dropped, they attempted or they went to the area to recover it despite the fact that our boats were already there. So nakipag-agawan pa sila, inunahan pa tayo (they even beat us to it),” he said.

But when the Chinese Coast Guard personnel saw that the supplies contained food, they threw them back into the water, thus wasting food, rice and other items, including medicine intended for troops on the Sierra Madre.

“Maybe they’re looking for construction materials but it was just a small package enough to carry food items and enough for it to float in the water. The Chinese did not have the authority or right to confiscate these supply packages which were meant for the soldiers, our Philippine soldiers onboard the BRP Sierra Madre,” Brawner said.

No pointing of guns

He also denied that the Filipino soldiers on the Sierra Madre pointed their guns at the Chinese.

“But we will not deny the fact that they were armed because the BRP Sierra Madre is a commissioned Philippine Navy ship and therefore, it is authorized to have weapons, we are authorized to put weapons on board, both crew served weapons and individual weapons of our soldiers,” he said. 

The AFP issued a separate statement on the incident. “Our personnel are governed by the Rules of Engagement (ROE) and clearly acted with the highest level of professionalism, restraint and discipline in the performance of their mission to safeguard our sovereignty and sovereign rights,” it said in a statement.

“Foreign vessels that venture dangerously close to our military vessel and in violation of safe distance protocols necessitate heightened vigilance and alertness from our personnel. Hence, our troops were seen onguard because of the CCG’s provocative presence near BRP Sierra Madre,” the AFP explained.

AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla told reporters the airdrop was “largely successful” despite CCG’s “aggressive and unprovoked interference.”

“While some essential supplies were seized and dumped overboard by the CCG, our brave soldiers managed to secure the majority of the items that were delivered,” she said.

“We will continue to carry out our mission with unwavering dedication, ensuring that our troops are well supplied and prepared to defend our nation’s interest,” she said at a briefing.

At the Shangri-La forum in Singapore, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III called China’s continued harassment of Philippine vessels “coercive” as it puts Filipino lives in danger.

“We stand with the Filipinos, and our commitment to the Mutual Defense Treaty is ironclad,” Austin said on the sidelines of the security forum. — Michael Punongbayan, Pia Lee-Brago