Manila, Beijing pull out ships from shoal

THE Philippines and China have pulled out their ships from the Panatag Shoal in the West Philippine Sea, easing the tension that many people feared could lead to a shooting war as a result of the territorial dispute over the area, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday.

“Following our consultations, the two Chinese maritime vessels and our [Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources] vessel are no longer in the lagoon,” the department said in a statement.

“We continue the consultations to address the remaining issues in Bajo de Masinloc.”

The Philippines and China started a word war in April, when a Philippine Navy ship stopped a Chinese fishing vessel and tried to arrest Chinese fishermen for illegal fishing. But a Chinese maritime vessel blocked the BRP Gregorio del Pilar from making arrests.

The Philippines says the shoal is within its Exclusive Economic Zone, but China claims it is part of its territory. The tension has sparked anti-Chinese demonstrations on the streets of Manila and at Chinese embassies in other parts of the world.

Malacañang welcomed the ships’ pullout, calling it  “a positive development” that could defuse the tension between the two countries.

“We appreciate the gesture of both parties to deescalate tension in Panatag Shoal, and there will be further consultations on the remaining vessels,” Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.

Despite the announcement of the pullout, the wire agencies quoted Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez as saying that ships were still in the area.

“There are still 30 Chinese fishing vessels inside the lagoon,” he said.

Fu Ying, the vice minister of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said last week the sea lanes in the South China Sea [West Philippine Sea] were key transport routes for China and “no interest would be served by linking territorial issues with freedom of navigation.”

She said the territorial issues could be solved through the active pursuit of dialogue, and “what we should do is to grasp every opportunity to each out for Asian solutions to Asian problems by working together.”-Manila Standard Today (June 06, 2012)