China has urged the Philippines to halt activities at Ren'ai Jiao 🏝️, a reef in the South China Sea that's stirring up some serious waves 🌊 between the two neighbors. On Monday, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Chen Xiaodong had a phone chat 📞 with Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro, expressing China's strong objections.
Last week, on March 23, the Philippines sent two coast guard ships and a supply ship to waters off Ren'ai Jiao, aiming to deliver construction materials to a military vessel that China says is illegally grounded there 🚢. China sees this move as a violation of its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights, saying it shakes up regional peace and stability.
Chen emphasized that China indisputably holds sovereignty over Nansha Qundao, including Ren'ai Jiao, and the nearby waters. He pointed fingers 👆 at the Philippines for repeated provocations, calling them the root cause of rising tensions.
\"China again urges the Philippines to abide by its commitments, stop infringements and provocations at sea, stop any unilateral move that may complicate the situation, and return to the right track of properly settling differences through negotiation and consultation with China,\" Chen stated.
But that's not all! Chen also expressed concerns over the Philippines' \"Maritime Zones Act,\" which aims to enforce an arbitral award on the South China Sea through domestic legislation. This act includes China's Huangyan Dao and many islands and reefs of China's Nansha Qundao, along with their adjacent waters, into the Philippines' maritime zones 😱. China views this as a serious violation of its sovereignty and maritime rights.
The South China Sea is a hotspot 🌍 with huge strategic and economic importance. As the tensions rise, everyone is watching to see how these two countries navigate these choppy waters 🛳️. Let's hope cooler heads prevail for the sake of regional peace ✌️.
Reference(s):
China lodges representations to Philippines over supplying Ren'ai Jiao
cgtn.com
