Inihayag ng Armed Forces of the Philippines nitong Huwebes na isang Chinese vessel ang nagsagawa umano ng “shadowing” sa mga barko ng Pilipinas at Estados Unidos na nagsasagawa ng joint maritime patrol sa West Philippine Sea.
Ayon kay AFP chief General Romeo Brawner Jr., namonitor nila ang Chinese vessel habang tila binabantayan nito ang joint maritime exercises ng Pilipinas at US.
“There was shadowing. So we monitored a Chinese vessel shadowing the joint maritime patrol but there are no aggressive actions by China and I hope that this continues,” saad ni Brawner.
Dadgag niya, tatlong barko — dalawang Pilipino at isang US — ang magkasamang naglalayag 30 nautical miles mula sa Malampaya gas field facility sa hilagang Palawan nang mamataan nila ang isa pang barko dakong 10:15 a.m.
Napagmasdan nila ang isang sasakyang pandagat ng Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy na tila binabantayan sila mula sa layong 6.5 nautical miles.
Para kay Brawner, ang magkasanib na patrol ng Phl-US ay hindi sinadya upang pukawin ang mga pwersang Tsino na naroroon sa pinagtatalunang rehiyon.
“It is not meant to agitate China,” sabi ni Brawner. “Iyon lang ang talagang objective natin, to make sure that we have interoperability with our ally, the US, and also to impose that objective of making sure that we promote the rules based international order.”
Idinaos ng mga military units ng Pilipinas at US ang kanilang joint maritime at air patrol sa West Philippine Sea mula Nobyembre 21, Martes, hanggang Nobyembre 23, Huwebes.
Ayon kay Brawner, “successful” ang joint patrol ng Pilipinas at US.
“So far, we believe that the joint maritime and air patrol between the Philippines and the US have been very successful in the sense that there are no untoward incidents,” sabi ni Brawner.
“We were able to achieve the objectives that we have set forth for this joint maritime and air patrols. So we saw how we could operate closely with our allies, the US,” dagdag niya.
