Manila: Philippines military chief Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana has declared to build a well-equipped military hub on Thitu Island. Also, the Philippines plans to place high-resolution, night-capable cameras in the military hub to monitor the movements of Chinese naval militia alongside other ships.
“The Philippine military will send President Rodrigo Duterte a proposal to permit the construction of the military hub. This hub will be equipped with high-resolution, night-capable cameras to monitor activities around islands claimed by the Philippines. Moreover, this hub will be used as a centre for the Philippines to sustain patrols in the South China Sea,” said Philippine military chief Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana.
Furthermore, the main objective of this military hub is to drive away Chinese maritime militia and other Chinese vessels from the Philippine territorial waters, General Cirilito Sobejana said as he issued a direct warning to China. China has reacted to the Philippine warning. Hua Chunying, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, said China could resolve the dispute with the Philippines through their common consensus, with dialogue and consultation. At the same time, she also claimed that some people are trying to raise tensions between the two nations.
The China-Philippines dispute over the South China Sea seems to have escalated drastically. In March, there was severe discontent in the Philippines against China after hundreds of its fishing boats entered the Philippine waters. Hence, over the past two months, the Philippine government and military have been taking an aggressive stance over the South China Sea issue and countering China with a befitting response.
In April, the Philippines had also indicated constructing artificial islands in the South China Sea, just like China. After that, President Rodrigo Duterte had warned not to cease the Philippine Naval patrols while speaking of a possible ‘bloody war’ with China. The Philippine Coast Guard and Task Force had foiled the attempts of intrusion by the Chinese ships. Besides, last week, the Philippines openly rejected the Chinese fishing ban, which is imposed every year.
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