This photo, provided by the Philippine Coast Guard on Sept. 26th, shows a diver cutting rope tied to a floating barrier at the Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea.
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This photo, provided by the Philippine Coast Guard on Sept. 26th, shows a diver cutting rope tied to a floating barrier at the Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea.
AP
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine president said Friday that his country does not want a confrontation but will staunchly defend its waters after its coast guard removed a floating barrier placed by China at a disputed shoal in the South China Sea.
It was the first time President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has spoken publicly against China’s installation of the 300-meter (980-foot) -long barrier at the entrance to Scarborough Shoal which was dismantled at his order.
“We’re not looking for trouble but what we’ll do is to continue defending the maritime territory of the Philippines and the rights of our fishermen, who have been fishing in those areas for hundreds of years,” Marcos said in response to a question at a news briefing in southern Surigao del Norte province.
The latest flare-up between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea, one of the world’s busiest trade routes, comes after Marcos decided earlier this year to allow an expansion of the U.S. military presence in the Philippines under a 2014 defense pact. The prospect of more American forces in local military camps in the northern…
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