The Philippines and Vietnam will let their
sailors occupying islands in the Spratlys visit one another to play sports, as
the two put up an increasingly united front against China in the regional
dispute.
"We
will be conducting fun games... sending some of our boys to their occupied
islands for games like basketball and soccer," Philippine Navy chief
Alexander Pama said yesterday.
Last
October, the chiefs of both navies signed a memorandum of understanding to,
among other things, coordinate search-and-rescue operations, although there are
no plans for joint military exercises.
Vice-Admiral
Pama gave no timetable for the sporting friendlies in the Spratlys, but
indicated that they would start soon. He declined to say how many troops are
stationed on the nine islands there that are occupied by the Philippines.
Despite
some overlapping territorial claims, the two countries have enjoyed good
relations since the end of the Vietnam War, said regional security expert
Rommel Banlaoi.
"There's
clearly a common security concern regarding China - and Vietnam is the only Asean
country that has expressed strong support for the Philippines' proposal,"
he said, referring to the proposal for a common Asean approach to settling the
Spratlys dispute with China.
At an
Asean leaders' summit in Cambodia earlier this month, Philippine President
Benigno Aquino appeared to have made little headway in persuading his Asean
counterparts to jointly push for a binding code of conduct in the South China
Sea.
Four of
Asean's 10 members have staked claims over the Spratlys - a sprawl of mostly
uninhabitable islands and reefs which are believed to sit atop vast hydrocarbon
deposits and straddle one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.
China
claims 'indisputable' sovereignty over the entire Spratlys, largely on
historical grounds - and it has dismissed protests by both the Philippines and
Vietnam over alleged intrusions by Chinese naval vessels.
Just
last month, Vietnam accused China of endangering the lives of 11 Vietnamese
fishermen by blocking their vessel from entering the disputed Paracel Islands
in the South China Sea to seek shelter from a storm.
The
last actual fight over the Spratlys, involving China and Vietnam, was in 1988,
when more than 70 Vietnamese sailors were killed.
The
festering stand-off has become an increasingly high-profile foreign policy
issue for both the Philippines and Vietnam in recent years, amid concerns over
China's perceived assertiveness in the regional dispute.
Both
Vietnam and the Philippines are strengthening their defence arsenals to better
protect their territorial claims. Vietnam has a pending order worth a reported
US$2 billion for six Kilo-class submarines from Russia, and has made
acquisitions of the Su-30MK fighter aircraft and the Gepard-class frigate.
The
cash-strapped Philippines is boosting spending on its ageing and poorly
equipped navy, which is set to take delivery of a second United States
Hamilton-class patrol cutter later this year.
The
Aquino administration also announced in January that it would accept a greater
military presence here from strategic ally America by - among other things -
holding more joint military exercises.
Vice-Adm
Pama said that none of the naval war games with the US set for later this month
would be held in disputed waters. The yearly war games - which involve several
thousand troops from both countries - are named Balikatan, or 'shoulder to
shoulder'.
China's
embassy in Manila did not respond to a request for comment on the closer ties
between the Philippines and Vietnam in the Spratlys.
In a
related development yesterday, a Chinese cruise operator said one of its ships
had completed on Monday a trial tour to islands in the South China Sea that are
also claimed by Vietnam, a move likely to anger Hanoi, reported Agence France-Presse.
The
cruise ship, Scent of Princess Coconut, was on a three-day trip to the Paracel
Islands - which Beijing and Hanoi have a long-standing territorial dispute over
- to investigate possible tourism routes.
Alastair
McIndoe
The
Straits Times
Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Strategy, Investment and Management, focusing Healthcare and Life Science with expertise in ASEAN. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programmes. Many thanks for visiting www.yourvietnamexpert.com and/or contacting us at contact@yourvietnamexpert.com
No comments:
Post a Comment