RP to resume Spratly patrols amid row

RP to resume Spratly patrols amid row

MANILA (AFP): The Philippines military is to resume patrols around the Spratlys chain, the disputed South China Sea coral formation occupied by China, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said on Thursday.

Bad weather this week disrupted Chinese construction activity and Philippine patrols around Mischief Reef, the subject of a bilateral dispute which broke out early this month.

Philippine President Joseph Estrada and Chinese leader Jiang Zemin discussed the dispute on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific leaders summit in Kuala Lumpur this week and agreed to allow experts to study solutions.

The Spratlys lie near vital sea lines and are believed to hold vast oil and mineral deposits. They are also claimed wholly or in part by Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.