‘Manila won’t be embroiled’:

Philippines

Duterte

Roque Jr

The Philippines said Sunday that it won’t get embroiled in a fresh spat between the US and China involving Beijing’s protest of an American warship passing near a Chinese-controlled shoal also claimed by the Philippines.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr said that “the United States can take care of its own interest” and added “we do not wish to be part of a US-China intramural” in the disputed South China Sea.

The Chinese government on Saturday accused the US of trespassing in its territorial waters when a US guided missile destroyer sailed near Scarborough Shoal to promote freedom of navigation in the disputed waters.

The Philippines also claims the shoal, which is a tiny, uninhabited reef that China seized from the Philippines in 2012 after a tense maritime standoff.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has revived once-frosty relations with China since taking power in 2016 and often criticizes US security policies. He has rejected planned joint patrols by the US and Philippine navies in disputed South China Sea waters along with joint combat exercises that could offend China.

His predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, backed a continued US presence in the region to serve as a counterweight to China.

Under Aquino, the Philippines brought its disputes with China in the South China Sea to international arbitration in 2013 and overwhelmingly won the case three years later. China refused to participate and ignored the decision. (AP)