Ferdinand Marcos, president of the Philippines, has warned China to avoid crossing a red column in the South China Sea, where hostilities are still persisted.
If any Filipino died as a result of China’s intentional actions, he said, the Philippines may regard it as tight to” an act of war” and react accordingly.
Military leaders from around the universe, including the US and China, were present at a security conference in Singapore where Mr. Marcos was speaking.
In response, a Taiwanese military spokesman accused the Philippines of “deflecting the blame on China” and” spreading and attacking”.
The long-running conflict between China and the Philippines over place in the South China Sea has gotten worse in recent months, leading to violent conflicts.
Manila has vehemently complained about Chinese guard ships firing water cannons at Spanish ships and supply vessels.
Beijing has said that it is defending its independence. Earlier on Friday, a Taiwanese military official accused the Philippines of making “provocations”.
Any escalated tensions could lead to a fight between Chinese and American forces in the South China Sea, according to observers. In the event of an invasion, the US and the Philippines are bound by a convention that they have signed to assist them in protecting the south-eastern nation.
The US has recently stated that it will uphold its “ironclad” pledges to its allies in the region, and it has attempted to bolster those commitments by holding a conference with the Philippines and Japan next month.
A member posed a fictional scenario in which a Filipino soldier was killed by Taiwanese water cannons as Mr. Marcos ‘ opening address at the Shangri-la Dialogue in Singapore on Friday. He was asked if that would constitute a dark line and if it would be infringed by the US-Philippines agreement.
” If by a willful work a Filipino- not merely serviceman, but also Filipino citizen- is killed … that is what I think very, very close to what we identify as an act of war and therefore we will react accordingly. And our agreement companions, I believe, even hold that same standard”.
He noted that while there have been injuries in subsequent clashes, none have yet been fatal. ” Once we get to that level, that is certainly, we may have crossed the Rubicon. Is that a dark line? It’s almost certain to be a dark range.
The Chinese official responded to a question from the BBC, saying that “if one just was accidentally killed in a fight or accident that causes conflict, then I really believe it to be a hostile country.”
Mr. Marcos ‘ state is increasing its military spending and purchasing weapons from the US and India. It is trying to secure a sizable portion of the proposed US military assistance item for its allies in the Indo-Pacific place.
The problem even surfaced during a crucial conference between US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and his Chinese equivalent Dong Jun before on Friday.
The Philippines “has broken its personal vows and making threats” over the disputed Second Thomas Shoal, where Manila has established a military island, according to the Chinese government.
In a new joint military training, the US sent a mid-range missile system to the Philippines, according to them, because it “posed a real threat to local safety.”
However, both the US and China both made it clear that they were interested in maintaining communication channels available.
A US representative at the conference stated that they were working on establishing a crisis contacts working group and resuming phone conversations between military officers, a crucial channel of communication that ended in 2022 following then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.
Mr Wu told investigators that the conference was “positive, sensible and constructive”. He added that the US- China relationship was” stabilising from more decay”.