Philippine actions in South China Sea 'extremely dangerous' - Chinese state media

On Monday, China’s official media accused the Philippines of regularly intruding on Chinese territory in the South China Sea, disseminating false information, and conspiring with extraterritorial forces to stir trouble.

The Philippines has depended on US assistance to repeatedly antagonise China, with such “extremely dangerous” action significantly jeopardising regional peace and stability, the People’s Daily, China’s Communist Party newspaper, stated in a column on Monday.

The Philippines’ foreign ministry and a national task force in charge of the South China Sea did not immediately reply to demands for comment on the story on Christmas Day.

Tensions between Beijing and Manila have risen in recent months as both sides trade accusations over a series of incidents in the South China Sea, including allegations that China rammed a ship carrying the Philippine armed forces chief of staff earlier this month.

China claims the majority of the South China Sea, which is shared by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Indonesia. In a 2016 verdict in a dispute brought by the Philippines, an international tribunal rejected China’s claim, which Beijing opposes.

Last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi issued an unusually forthright warning, saying that any mistake in the conflict with the Philippines will result in a stern response from China, and he urged for discussion to overcome “serious difficulties.”

The souring of bilateral ties coincides with Manila’s moves to bolster military relations with Japan and the United States, its former colonial power and defence ally of seven decades.

China expressed anger at the US this month for sending a navy ship into waters near the disputed area where China and the Philippines have had several maritime confrontations.

Washington has frequently used its defence treaty with Manila to “threaten” China, blatantly supporting Philippine violation of Chinese sovereignty and “peddling security anxieties”, the People’s Daily said.

That is “extremely irresponsible and dangerous”, said the commentary, written under the pen name Zhong Sheng, or “Voice of China”, often used to offer the newspaper’s views on foreign policy matters.