Philippines President condemns China’s actions in disputed South China Sea

The Philippines has denounced China’s unjustified, illegal, and reckless actions against one of its planes that was conducting patrols earlier in the week in the disputed South China Sea. In a statement, Philippines President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. strongly condemned the air incident and said he stands by the brave men and women of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

(AFP), especially the Philippine Air Force (PAF). The country’s state news agency cited the Armed Forces of the Philippines reporting on August 10 about the dangerous and provocative actions of China’s People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), which harassed a PAF aircraft conducting maritime patrols over Bajo de Masinloc, located some 120 nautical miles off the coast of Zambales, well within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ). However, in a statement released by the Southern Theatre Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), it said that Philippine aircraft illegally entered the airspace over its Huangyan Dao in the South China Sea.

The air incident took place in Bajo de Masinloc when two Chinese fighter jets executed a dangerous manoeuvre at around 9 a.m. and dropped flares in the path of the NC-212i on August 8.