Beijing, 12 August 2024 (TDI): The Philippines has continued to neglect China’s goodwill efforts to calm tensions by sending a Philippine Air Force plane to illegally enter the airspace over Huangyan Dao in the South China Sea on Thursday, and issuing a complaint on Saturday over the legitimate and professional actions by the Southern Theater Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in response to such intrusion.
Chinese analysts and military experts on Sunday slammed the Philippines’ latest actions, trming them a petty attempt to constantly bolster Manila’s victimhood narrative in the South China Sea.
They stressed that the Chinese military’s response was restrained, unarguably responsible, and fully compliant with international laws and norms.
A Philippine Air Force NC-212 aircraft had illegally entered into the airspace over Huangyan Dao in the South China Sea on August 8, interfering with Beijing’s regular training activities despite repeated warnings from the Chinese side, accoding to an official release by the PLA Southern Theater Command on Saturday.
The theater command deployed aerial and maritime forces to identify, verify, track, monitor, warn and drive the intruding plane away in accordance with law. The operation was conducted professionally, with adherence to legal standards, theater command added.
It said that China holds indisputable sovereignty over Huangyan Dao and adjacent waters. The theater command’s forces remain on high alert, and are committed to protecting national sovereignty and security, while also maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea.
However, the Philippine military on Saturday complained about Chinese actions, claiming them as “dangerous and provocative,” and according to media, it marked the first time the Philippines has complained of actions by Chinese plane, as opposed to navy or coast guard vessels, since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr took office in 2022.
The Philippine military said on Saturday that two Chinese Air Force plabes “executed a dangerous maneuver” and dropped flares in the path of a Philippine air force plane conducting a so-called routine patrol over the Huangyan Island on Thursday morning.
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The fact that the Philippines has dispatched Air Force plane to harass the Chinese military’s normal activities around Huangyan Island, proves the continuous escalation in their provocative behavior, said Chinese military expert Zhang Junshe.
The Chinese military’s normal exercises around Huangyan Island are justified, lawful, and reasonable, he added.
In response to the Philippines’ provocative actions, the countermeasures taken by Chinese military are professional and legal, fully in accordance with international law and practices, and beyond reproach, Zhang noted.
