Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said Friday at the end of annual exercises with the United States that the Philippine military needs to evolve rapidly because of threats to the “free and open” Asia-Pacific region.
Teodoro's comments came against the backdrop of a worsening maritime dispute with China, and he said the military must “try to focus on sending actual soldiers.”
“The worst thing in the kitchen is a dull knife, and good chefs polish their knives every day,” Teodoro said.
“We're going to continue to push them to evolve into a multi-threat, multi-theater force as quickly as possible,” he said.
The annual “Balikatan” war games, which involve about 11,000 Americans, 5,000 Filipinos and 100 Australian troops, begin on April 22 and involve an archipelago near potential flashpoints in the South China Sea and Taiwan. concentrated in the north and west of the country.
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In the area, clashes between Chinese and Philippine ships have increased around the shallow waters of the South China Sea, which is claimed by Manila, and Chinese air and naval activity has increased around the nearby autonomous island of Taiwan.
Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea, ignoring competing claims by other countries, including the Philippines, and international rulings that China's claims have no legal basis.
It has dispatched hundreds of coast guard, navy and other vessels to patrol the disputed waters.
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Earlier this year, the Chinese coast guard blasted Philippine vessels with water cannons off the disputed waters of Second Thomas and Scarborough Shoals, causing damage and injuries.
“No matter what happens, any malicious or, for lack of a better word, sinister attempt to subvert our goals of a free and open Indo-Pacific and a rules-based international order, There will be no stopping our common progress toward upholding these internationally accepted norms,'' Teodoro said, using the U.S.'s preferred terminology for the Asia-Pacific region.
Lt. Gen. Michael Cederholm, commander of the U.S. 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, said the joint exercise, named Balikatan (Tagalog for “shoulder to shoulder”), “directly built the combat readiness” of the allies.
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“Also to adversaries who do not believe in a free and open Pacific, who do not believe in transparency, who do not seek peaceful solutions, and who seek to use force to impose their will on other sovereign nations. , we should give them a chance to stop.” He said.
The spat between the Philippines and China took a new turn on Friday when Manila's top security adviser called for the expulsion of Chinese embassy officials, citing “malign influence and interference.”
The Chinese embassy said in a May 3 statement that diplomats had reached an informal agreement with the Philippine military through the Western Command to address the dispute around Ren'ai Reef, the Chinese name for Second Thomas Reef in the South China Sea. Announced.
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Teodoro said on Monday that no such agreement had been reached with Chinese diplomats.
On Friday, Philippine National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano accused the Chinese embassy of “repeatedly engaging in and spreading disinformation, disinformation and malicious information.”
He said: “Those responsible for these negative influence and interference activities must be immediately expelled from the country.”
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Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian said Friday that the Chinese government “solemnly urges the Philippines to effectively guarantee that Chinese diplomats can carry out their duties normally, (and) to stop the violations and provocations.” “I am doing so,” he said.
Second Thomas Shoal is home to the Philippine military, who are frequently resupplied by boat with food, water, and other supplies.
Resupply missions to remote coral reefs have become a flashpoint between rival claimants.
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