China says can \u2018easily win\u2019 confrontation with Philippines<\/p>\n
The remarks by Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan came a day after\nPhilippine defence chief Gilberto Teodoro labelled Beijing a regional\n\u201ctroublemaker\u201d.<\/p>\n
MANILA: China\u2019s ambassador to Manila has said Beijing could \u201ceasily\nwin\u201d a conflict with the Philippines, though it would never choose\nforce, comments the archipelago nation said could be read as a \u201cthinly\nveiled threat\u201d.<\/p>\n
Beijing claims most of the South China Sea despite an international\nruling that its assertion has no legal basis, and Philippine and Chinese\nships have engaged in repeated confrontations in recent years, some\nleading to collisions and injuries.<\/p>\n
The ambassador\u2019s remarks came a day after Philippine defence chief\nGilberto Teodoro labelled Beijing a regional \u201ctroublemaker\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe should feel fortunate enough that you have a neighbour like China\nin this region,\u201d Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan told local reporters in\nManila on Thursday (Oct 15).<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not\nchoose force, and we love peace,\u201d he said after giving a speech at a\nschool in Manila.<\/p>\n
Jing added that the troublemaker label was \u201cnonsense\u201d, while accusing\nManila of harassing Chinese workers and teachers, without offering\nspecific examples.<\/p>\n
In a response on late Thursday, the Philippine foreign ministry\nbemoaned comments it said were \u201chardly helpful\u201d given the two countries\u2019\ncomplicated ties.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is regrettable that Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan today had a poor\nchoice of words that would seem to convey a thinly veiled threat of the\nuse of force,\u201d it said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela had\nearlier called Jing\u2019s pronouncement a \u201cdirect threat\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo people feel fortunate when a larger neighbour repeatedly violates\nthe law and then tells them to be thankful it was not worse,\u201d he said in\na post on X.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot using force against a country whose rights you are already\nviolating is not peace. It is coercion by other means!\u201d he said, adding\nthat Philippine coast guard personnel were often subjected to ramming\nand water cannons.<\/p>\n
The Chinese embassy in Manila, while confirming Jing\u2019s remarks,\naccused Tarriela of taking them out of context and scheming to undermine\nbilateral relations.<\/p>\n
\u201c(Jing) emphasised that China views the Philippines as a neighbour\nacross the sea and a friend bound to China by deep historical and\ncultural ties,\u201d it said, adding it sought only \u201cstable relations\u201d.<\/p>\n
Last week, the Philippine Coast Guard accused its Chinese\ncounterparts of obstructing the medical evacuation of an ailing Filipino\nsoldier near a disputed shoal in the contested South China Sea.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Teodoro disputed Philippine Vice President Sara\nDuterte\u2019s characterisation of the Philippines as a troublemaker in\nSoutheast Asia.<\/p>\n
\u201cChina is the troublemaker, because as far as the South Pacific, they\nare interfering. They are even dropping missiles,\u201d he said, referencing\na long-range ballistic missile test in June that drew regional\nprotests.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/china-says-it-can-easily-win-a-confrontation-with-the-philippines-1792126209", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }