Ramos rules out military action to expel Chinese

Ramos rules out military action to expel Chinese

MANILA (Reuter): President Fidel Ramos said yesterday China's occupation of a part of the Spratly Islands claimed by the Philippines did not pose an imminent threat to the country and ruled out military action to expel the Chinese.

But he stressed Manila's "conciliatory stance" should not be misconstrued as submissiveness or a sign of lack of political will to assert its rights over what is "legally" a Philippine territory.

"The recent intrusions of China into the outlying portions of our Kalayaan island group is not to be taken as a serious military threat to our external security, at least for the moment," he said.

"We can still effectively handle the situation without resorting to direct military counter-action because the Philippines stands on strong moral ground on this issue," he added, referring to Manila's efforts to resolve the conflict through diplomacy.

Tension over the Spratlys rose in February when Ramos accused the Chinese of building what looked like naval support installations on Mischief Reef in the Kalayaan group of islands.

Manila is claiming ownership of the eight-island Kalayaan group in the Spratlys, a cluster of largely uninhabited isles, shoals and reefs in the South China Sea.

The potentially oil-rich area is claimed wholly or in part by China, the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.

China claims the entire Spratlys and says the structures on Mischief Reef are shelters for fishermen.

Ramos, speaking to armed forces intelligence officers, said Manila adhered to a 1992 declaration by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations calling for a peaceful settlement of the Spratly dispute.

World opinion was on the Philippine side, he said.

"Our conciliatory posture, however, is not to be taken as a sign of submissiveness. Neither should it be misconstrued as a lack of political will to assert our rights and protect what legally belongs to us."

Ramos claimed success in the campaign against communist guerrillas, Moslem separatists and rightwing army rebels.

The threats from the three groups "have considerably declined," enabling the country to rebuild the economy, he said.

"After a long and bloody internal series of strifes, our dream of attaining enduring peace and stability is now a reality," he said.

The government is holding separate peace talks with Moslem guerrillas and army dissidents linked to coup attempts.

But talks with the communists have foundered. Formal negotiations to end the 26-year insurgency collapsed in Brussels last month but Manila says it is ready to resume talking.