On April 20, Philippine National Security Adviser Arnold issued a statement saying that any secret agreements reached between China and the previous Philippine government on disputes in the South China Sea are contrary to national interests and invalid, and that the current government will not recognize them. Arnold also exclaimed: "This government has no knowledge of any secret or gentleman's agreement, and if the previous government had reached such an agreement, the agreement would have been nullified." ”
On April 22, the 19th Western Pacific Forum in Qingdao, China, officially opened, with the Philippines invited but not represented. The opening ceremony of the forum was attended by representatives from 29 countries, including the new commander of the US Pacific Fleet, Admiral Stephen Korel, and the new commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy, Moisev.
The Philippines, one of the members of the Western Pacific Forum, not only did not participate in this year's exercise, but instead held this year's "shoulder-to-shoulder" military exercise with the United States and the United States from April 22. The exercise will include simulated armed recapture of the enemy-occupied province of Palawan in the South China Sea, as well as islands in the northern provinces of Cagayan and Bataan. Philippine spokesman Colonel Lojiko told the media, "The exercise will demonstrate the strength of the U.S.-Philippine alliance and its willingness to defend its territory, and it cannot be ruled out that it may also send a message to our adversary." ”
There are several unusual aspects of the exercise that deserve our attention and vigilance, first, Australia and France will participate for the first time in the exercise segment outside Philippine territorial waters, and another 14 countries will participate as observers. Second, for the first time, the exercise will take place beyond Philippine territorial waters, with about 11,000 U.S. troops and 5,000 Filipino soldiers participating.
Third, the Philippine Coast Guard will participate for the first time and will send six ships to participate in the joint military exercise. Fourth, the exercise has a wide range of subjects and is highly targeted, including maritime security, air and missile defense, dynamic missile strikes, network defense, and information operations.
With the support of the United States and the courage of the United States and the Philippines in the South China Sea military exercise, the Philippines brazenly announced on 22 April that it would "carry out a hydrographic survey of the waters east of Thitu Island in the South China Sea, and all unrelated vessels passing through here should pay attention to avoid them." And on March 20, the Philippines sent a survey team to illegally land on the iron line reef five kilometers west of Thitu Island to carry out a so-called "hydrographic survey", and was driven away by the Chinese coast guard!
At present, China's coast guard vessels and as many as 26 militia fishing boats have assembled in the waters around Thitu Island to follow and supervise the hydrographic survey activities of the Philippines! If the Philippine side wants to carry out another surprise attack and intrude into the islands and reefs around Thitu Island on the mainland to carry out illegal activities, it will inevitably be blocked and expelled. At the same time, at the Western Pacific Forum, the Chinese military senior attended and delivered a speech, stressing that "China will not cause trouble and will never be afraid of it, and the Chinese military will resolutely defend the reunification of the motherland and national interests." ”
As for the provocative move by the Philippine side, China has long been the first to speak. The Philippines has gone back on its word and has no integrity, and its attitude has gradually hardened, that is, it continues to join forces with the United States to confront China in the South China Sea. In the next step, the Philippines will inevitably escalate its provocations in the South China Sea again, and we must be prepared to formulate an effective strategy to resolve the dispute once and for all and put out the attempt of the Philippines and the United States to create incidents to disrupt the South China Sea and contain China. At present, the United States wants to use the Philippines and Japan to contain the mainland in the Asia-Pacific region, and then the United States will exert its efforts in Ukraine and the Middle East to defeat Russia and Iran and reverse the strategic dilemma.