For the sake of peace, the mainland has endured the Philippines for a long time? Now, the mainland seems to be striking hard, and the Philippines is difficult to accept.
On May 11, according to a Philippine spokesperson, China has reclaimed the island at Xianbin Reef.
In this regard, the Philippine side said that it has sent three ships to the vicinity of Xianbin Reef, one ship to monitor China's reclamation project, and the other two ships are waiting for an opportunity to investigate and develop here.
This makes people even more angry, because it is clear that Xianbin Reef is originally part of the mainland's Nansha Islands, and the mainland has indisputable sovereignty over this area, so what is the problem of the mainland wanting to reclaim islands there?
On the contrary, the Philippine side played itself as a puffed bag, pretending to be bullied.
In this regard, Wang Wenbin, spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the mainland, sternly pointed out: It is groundless and purely rumor-mongering!
Recently, the Philippine side has repeatedly spread rumors, deliberately smeared China, and tried to mislead the international community, which is futile.
So, why is it said that the mainland has been patient with the Philippines for a long time? What is the purpose of the Philippines' recent frequent smearing of the mainland?
The source of this article is from the official media, and the specific link is repeated at the end of the article, but in order to improve the readability of the article, the details may be polished, please read it sensibly for reference only
For the sake of peace, the mainland has repeatedly endured
The escalating disputes in the South China Sea can be traced back to some of the Philippines' misdeeds. As one of the neighboring countries in the South China Sea, the Philippines has to a large extent provoked and created the continuous deterioration of contradictions in the region.
Since the 70s of the 20th century, the Philippines has begun to illegally occupy eight islands and reefs in China's Nansha Islands, including Tokyo Reef and Fiery Cross Reef.
Not only that, the Philippines has also violated international law and bilateral agreements by building some military facilities on these occupied islands and reefs, taking the opportunity to expand its presence and influence in the South China Sea, and seriously threatening China's sovereignty and territorial integrity in the South China Sea.
In addition, the Philippines has repeatedly obstructed the normal operation and navigation of Chinese fishing vessels and vessels in the South China Sea, and illegally detained Chinese fishermen and vessels.
In 1988, the Philippines even blew up a supply shed built by China on Sembin Reef, which was a blatant violation of the law and an arrogant and unreasonable provocation.
One of the major factors leading to the escalation of disputes in the South China Sea is that the United States has been instigating and supporting the Philippines to carry out relevant provocations and incidents against China in the South China Sea.
The United States has always viewed China as a potential threat and hopes to use countries such as the Philippines to contain China's influence in the South China Sea. Shortly after the US military raided the Chinese Embassy in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in May 1999, the Philippines docked its beached ship near Ren'ai Jiao in Chinese territory, marking the beginning of the United States and the Philippines to jointly deal with China on the South China Sea issue.
Since then, the Philippines and the United States have continued to provoke China with the help of this beached ship incident.
In 2013, the Philippines unilaterally initiated the so-called "South China Sea Arbitration", which seriously violated the affirmation that the parties concerned should settle the dispute peacefully through negotiation.
In fact, the Philippines' purpose is very clear, which is to create long-term contradictions and permanently occupy Ren'ai Jiao, thereby infringing on and undermining China's rights and interests in the South China Sea.
In December 2023, the Philippine Coast Guard once again caused trouble in the South China Sea. They directed a number of vessels to illegally intrude into China's Ren'ai Jiao waters, a blatant violation of the "gentlemen's agreement" previously reached between the two sides.
After invading into Ren'ai Jiao, the Philippine side took the opportunity to hype up the so-called "rights protection" action, and some officials and the media clamored for the slogan of "defending territorial sovereignty".
In addition, in March this year, a similar break-in was staged again. Four Philippine vessels illegally intruded into the waters of Second Thomas Shoal again. In the face of the unreasonable provocation of the Philippine side, the Chinese coast guard can only passively defend itself.
However, after the Philippine ship evacuated on its own, CNN released the edited video footage, commenting on China's "bullying" of the Philippines in an attempt to smear China's legitimate law enforcement actions.
It is not difficult to see from this series of actions that the Philippine Government and some people with ulterior motives are trampling on China and creating contradictions.
They have not only flagrantly violated international law and bilateral agreements and harmed the friendly relations between the two countries, but also co-opted the United States, an external force, behind the scenes, to conspire against China and weaken China's influence in the South China Sea.
And all this is inseparable from the promotion of some key Filipino figures.
First up is the current Philippine Coast Guard Commander Tariera. Since 2019, Tariera has repeatedly complained about the Coast Guard's inadequate budget.
Its intention is very clear, that is, to "cry poverty" to the Philippine government and the United States, and to demand a substantial increase in military spending to purchase new equipment, so as to deal with China.
In the face of frequent provocations by the Philippines, in fact, the mainland has long taken corresponding measures.
Land reclamation
In 2015, the mainland launched a land reclamation project on Mischief Island on Fiery Cross Reef to transform it into an artificial island for both military and civilian use.
In addition, the Mischief Island land reclamation project uses the world's leading new reclamation technology, and dozens of large ships are involved. After two years of unremitting construction, an artificial island with an area of 5.66 square kilometers stands above the South China Sea, the area equivalent to nearly 1,000 standard football fields.
The new island not only reflects China's engineering and technological prowess, but also greatly enhances its strategic value in the South China Sea, playing an outpost role in safeguarding its rights and interests in the South China Sea.
On Mischief Island, China has built a 3,000-meter-long dual-use runway. This runway can not only meet the take-off and landing needs of various types of transport aircraft and fighters, but also effectively enhance China's air supremacy in the South China Sea.
At the same time, the interconnection of Mischief Island with other Nansha islands and reefs forms a seamless monitoring network, which helps to detect and eliminate sea and air threats in a timely manner and ensure regional peace and stability.
In addition, there is a large deep-water military port on the north side of Mischief Island, which can accommodate all types of warships and supply ships.
This facility not only provides logistical and strategic support for the South China Sea region, but also demonstrates China's ability and determination to respond to various complex situations at any time.
And the strategic significance of Senbin Reef is much more important than that of Mischief Island.
The importance of Sembin Reef
Among the many islands and reefs in the Nansha Islands, Xianbin Reef has attracted much attention because of its special strategic position.
This reef is not only geographically at a critical juncture, but also its military strategic value and resource development value should not be underestimated, and it can be said that Xianbin Jiao is a key fulcrum for China's defense of its rights and interests in the South China Sea.
Located in the middle of the Spratly Islands, with the Philippines to the east and Malaysia to the west, Xianbin Reef is at the throat of the East-West Corridor of the South China Sea.
Once effective control of Xianbin Reef is achieved, it is equivalent to grasping the "lifeline" through the South China Sea. No vessel can escape surveillance in the area and, if necessary, blockade it.
Secondly, Sembin Reef is also extremely valuable at the military-strategic level. Due to its close proximity to the central part of the South China Sea, Xianbin Jiao can play the role of a forward supply base, providing supplies for ocean-going ships and greatly improving the mainland's military power projection capability in the region.
In addition, in the event of a conflict, Sembin Reef will become a "firepower fortress" in the central part of the South China Sea, forming a suppressive deterrent against any hostile targets.
In addition to its military value, the resource development value of Sembin Reef cannot be ignored.
There are many reefs around Xianbin Reef, covering an area of thousands of square kilometers, which is equivalent to the territory of a small country. In the future, the resources of this vast sea area can be administered, including strategic resources such as offshore oil and natural gas.
In addition, the location of Sembin Reef is superior, and it occupies the central position of the archipelago, and the radiation range of marine rights and interests will also be quite extensive. Once it has a foothold here, its sovereignty over other islands and reefs of the Nansha Islands and even the resources of the adjacent waters will be more solid.
It is ridiculous to smear the mainland
It is precisely because of the previous project to build Mischief Island that the Philippine side spares no effort to smear China in an attempt to achieve its conspiracy goals.
As we all know, some reefs and islands in the South China Sea have been China's inherent territory since ancient times. However, the Philippines has turned a blind eye to this and has instead hyped up the hype that China is "encroaching" on islands in the South China Sea.
In fact, China's sovereignty claims have a historical and legal basis, while the Philippines' accusations are pure nonsense. Even if the mainland wants to reclaim the sea and build an island at Xianbin Jiao, this is purely a sovereign act of the mainland within the scope of its territorial sovereignty, which is completely legal and reasonable.
It can be said that the Philippines is entangled with China's actions in the South China Sea, reversing black and white, and its conspiracy aims are self-evident. It is an attempt to seize the opportunity to seek greater geopolitical interests and realize its ulterior motives on the South China Sea issue.
As one of the neighboring countries in the South China Sea, the Philippines should uphold the spirit of good-neighborliness and friendship and jointly safeguard peace and tranquility in the region.
However, what is sad is that the Philippines has not only carried out illegal military operations on Xianbin Reef, but has also repeatedly taken the opportunity to unreasonably provoke and deliberately smear China.
We advise the Philippine side to remember that China's determination to defend national sovereignty and maritime rights and interests is firm and unswerving. Any attempt to steal or undermine China's rights and interests in the South China Sea will be met with resolute countermeasures.
We sincerely hope that the flames of war in the South China Sea will never stop and peace will never stop. But this needs to be maintained by all parties. We will continue to work hard to resolve conflicts based on the principle of peace and rationality and achieve common development with countries in the region.
Resources:
Huanqiu.com: Does the Philippines say China has "reclaimed land" at Sembin Reef? Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Pure rumor-mongering - https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1798923863581773837&wfr=spider&for=pc
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China: Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin's Regular Press Conference on May 13, 2024_Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China
Reuters: The Philippines sends ships to disputed atolls where China is building "artificial islands".
Jimu News: Blue Room Observation丨The Philippines threatens to initiate a new round of arbitration, which is meaningless and meaningless-https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1796772407409057158&wfr=spider&for=pc
Beijing News: Ministry of Foreign Affairs: The reasons for the current situation in Ren'ai Jiao are clear and clear-https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1796023627215282821&wfr=spider&for=pc
Qilu One Point: Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Chinese people will not forget the barbaric crimes committed by NATO 25 years ago - https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1798382108433707473&wfr=spider&for=pc