President Aquino yesterday ran to the United States for spy planes, evidently against the reported  Chinese patrol boats and the combat-ready aircraft in the disputed islands.
Aquino wants  the deployment of US spy planes in the South China Sea to help bolster his government’s weak monitoring of foreign ships in the disputed waters, a move that may further increase the ongoing tension with China, which accused Washington of interfering in the internal affairs of claimant-countries.
In an interview, Aquino yesterday said his government might be requesting P3C Orion spy planes overflights on the disputed area so the Philippines can better patrol its extensive coastlines.
“We don’t have aircraft with those capabilities,” Aquino was quoted as saying.
A patrol team consisting of four China Marine Surveillance (CMS) ships also yesterday conducted a formation practice near Yongshu (Kagitingan) Reef in the South China Sea.
“The two-hour practice session was fulfilled smoothly but a helicopter scheduled to take part did not do so, due to adverse weather,” a report from the Chinese government web site said.
The CMS patrol sailed from south China’s coastal city of Sanya last June 26 to the South China Sea to conduct regular operations. The team is expected to travel more than 2,400 nautical miles during the patrols, it added.
They reached Huayang Reef, a coral reef in the Nansha Islands, last Sunday and anchored northeast of Yongshu Reef on Sunday evening, after covering a distance of 1,800 nautical miles, it said.
The Philippine military maintained the ongoing naval exercises between Filipino and American troops are not in any way connected with the South China Sea dispute between the Philippines and China which had just deployed four patrol vessels in the Spratlys, apparently to assert its claim over the territories.
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesman Col. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr. stressed the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT), which formally started yesterday in General Santos City, is an annual joint exercise between the Philippine and US navies that started in 1995.
“It has nothing to do with the West Philippine Sea issue. It has long been planned and it has been an annual activity since 1995,” Burgos said.
With this latest deployment, China has increased its presence both in the Kalayaan Islands Group (KIG) in Palawan and the Scarborough Shoal in Zambales, where a tense standoff between Philippine and Chinese ships erupted last April.
In Scarborough Shoal, latest monitoring showed that at least 28 Chinese vessels – five of which are government-controlled – were spotted in the disputed area.
Not a single Philippine ship is now stationed in the area to assert the country’s claim over contested shoal after Aquino ordered the pull out of two government vessels from the area – one from the Philippine Coast Guard and another from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).
According to Burgos, US Ambassador Harry Thomas and military Eastern Mindanao Command chief Lt. Gen. Jorge Segovia led the opening ceremonies in General Santos City.
The CARAT 2012 will involve not only personnel from the Philippine and US navies but also both countries’ coast guard troops.
Participating for the Philippine Navy are Barko ng Republika ng Pilipinas Magat Salamat (PS20), BRP Miguel Malvar (PS19), BRP Salvador Abcede (PG114), and BRP Teotimo Figuracion (PG389). For the US side, the USS Vandergrift (FFG48) and USNS Safeguard (T-ARS 50) will be joining in the exercises.
The Philippine Coast Guard dispatched BRP Pampanga (SARV 003) while the USCG has Waesche (WMSL751) participating in the CARAT.
The PN will also employ an Islander (PNI 320) aircraft while the US Navy will provide a P3C Orion and a SH-60B helicopter. The PCG will utilize a BO-105CB helicopter. Likewise, the exercise will involve around 400 personnel from the PN, 350 from the USN, 50 from the PCG, and 150 from the USCG.
For his part, Philippine Navy spokesman Col. Omar Tonsay said that CARAT exercise is expected to enhance interoperability of the combined RP-US navy and coast guard troops, and at the same time provide opportunities for sharing of tactical and doctrinal practices.
In a statement, the US Embassy also maintained that the CARAT exercise is designed to enhance maritime security skills and operational cohesiveness among participating forces. It also focuses on relationship building between military participants through sports and social events and improving community relations.
Meanwhile, USS Mercy, a hospital-ship which had just participated in the RP-US pacific Partnership 2012 in Samar, yesterday docked in Subic Bay, Zambales for routine replenishment until July 7.             With AFP