Philippines Prepares for Escalation in China Sea Disputes with China
Amid increasing confrontations, the Philippines is contingency planning for potential hostilities, while international support grows against China's aggressive maneuvers in the disputed waters.
- Philippine coastguards have escorted boats to the South China Sea to resupply its military base on the disputed Second Thomas Shoal seven times in the past four months, each time facing obstruction from China’s coastguards and maritime militia.
- The Philippines has publicized these confrontations to increase international support for its position, with the United States, a long-term ally of Manila, warning that an armed attack on the Philippine coastguard could trigger their mutual defence treaty.
- Philippines is contingency planning for an escalation of hostilities in the South China Sea, including a scenario where crew repel Chinese forces attempting to board Philippine vessels.
- China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce. Those claims, which an arbitral tribunal has declared baseless, extend to the exclusive economic zones of the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.
- A Philippine lawmaker revealed this week an alleged threat the country's top military official received from China's ambassador as tensions soared over differences in the South China Sea.
Newsweek 
South China Morning Post 
Washington Examiner 
Sky News 
CNA 
Reuters 
