As the commander of the United States’ Pacific Command (USPACOM) landed yesterday in the country apparently to discuss regional security with his local counterparts, a big fleet of Chinese fishing vessels arrived at the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea the day before in two disparate events but  which are expected to further heat up tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
Admiral Samuel Locklear, commander of the USPACOM, met with Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Jessie Dellosa shortly after an arrival honor was held in Camp Aguinaldo yesterday afternoon.
After the honors, AFP spokesman Col. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr. told reporters the meeting between Dellosa and Locklear would tackle the tension between the Philippines and China over the disputed South China Sea.
“That (dispute) is among the issues that involved AFP and the US Armed Forces, that is included in the discussion of security issues that has bearing on regional security and stability,” said Burgos.
Burgos, however, stressed that Locklear’s visit has nothing to do with the recent grounding of a Chinese warship in Half Moon Shoal, located approximately 60 nautical miles of Balabac town in Palawan.
“This is not connected with that happened or the incident in Half Moon Shoal…this is part of the security exchanges of the AFP and the US. This is just a reaffirmation of AFP and the US on our long enduring partnership, security ties and cooperation,” said Burgos.
The fleet of 30 Chinese fishing vessels arrived near the Yongshu Reef in the afternoon after setting off on Thursday from the Chinese province of Hainan, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
Chinese fishing boats regularly travel to the Spratlys, a potentially oil-rich archipelago which China claims as part of its territory on historical grounds.
But the fleet is the largest ever launched from the province, according to the report.
It includes a 3,000-ton supply ship, and a patrol vessel has also travelled to the area to provide protection, the report said. The vessels will spend the next five to 10 days fishing in the area, it added.
The fleet’s arrival came after China earlier Sunday extricated a naval frigate that got stranded four days earlier on a shoal in the Spratlys, near the western Philippine island of Palawan.
However the Philippines did not lodge a diplomatic protest over the matter, saying the stranding of the vessel in its exclusive economic zone was likely an accident.
China says it has sovereign rights to all the South China Sea, believed to sit atop vast oil and gas deposits, including areas close to the coastlines of other countries and hundreds of kilometres (miles) from its own landmass.
But Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, and the Philippines also claim parts of the South China Sea.
The Spratlys is  one of the biggest island chains in the area.
The rival claims have long made the South China Sea one of Asia’s potential military flashpoints, and tensions have escalated over the past year.
The Philippines and Vietnam have complained that China is becoming increasingly aggressive in its actions in the area — such as harassing fishermen — and also through bullying diplomatic tactics.
The Philippines said the latest example of this was at annual Southeast Asian talks in Cambodia that ended on Friday in failure because of the South China Sea issue.
The Philippines had wanted its fellow Association of Southeast Asian Nations to refer in a communique to a standoff last month with China over a rocky outcrop known as the Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea.
But Cambodia, the summit’s host and China’s ally, blocked the move.
Last Wednesday, a frigate of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) ran aground at Half Moon Shoal, which is well within the Philippines’ 200 nautical miles exclusive economic zone.
At least six other Chinese vessels went on to refloat the grounded ship. All the ships left the Shoal Sunday.
For his part, Dellosa welcomed Locklear’s visit as reaffirmation of the strong ties between the AFP and the US military.
The USPACOM commander will also head to Camp General Basilio Navarro in Zamboanga today to visit the troops from the US Armed Forces Joint Special Operations Task Force – Philippines (JSOTFP).
The JSOTF-P works together with the AFP to fight terrorism and deliver humanitarian assistance to the people of Mindanao at the request of the Philippine government.
“Tomorrow, we will again visit another part of the Philippines where the alliance and partnership of both our armed forces has been, and continues to flourish,” Dellosa said.
The AFP chief also cited that Locklear’s visit signifies the strengthening of the close ties between the Philippines’ and United States’ armed forces.
The Philippines, which has a mutual defence treaty with the United States, has been seeking greater support from its main defense ally after a face-off with China over the Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea in April.
Locklear would discuss “domain awareness” amid a changing security climate, according to the US Department of Defense website.
“So what we are looking for is to try to provide [the Philippines] assistance that builds the interoperability of our defence forces over time,” the website quoted him as saying.
He also warned that a possible “miscalculation” in the dispute could threaten regional stability and reiterated that the US and Philippine militaries needed to learn to work together better.
“I’m looking forward to giving the message to the Filipino military and to the leaders there that the United States is a very reliable ally. We want the Filipinos to be a reliable ally to us as well,” he was quoted as saying.
Aquino’s spokesman Edwin Lacierda said Locklear was in the country to convey a message from the US government reiterating commitment “to help the Philippines establish a minimum credible defense posture.”
Immediately after, Aquino called on Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin for another meeting, details of which were not made available to Palace reporters.
Lacierda also issued what Palace reporters described as a canned reply to media queries on the deployment of Chinese vessels in the Spratlys.
According to Lacierda, the government will study its options regarding reports claiming on the arrival of 30 Chinese fishing vessels at the disputed Spratlys Island.
“There is still a fishing ban in effect. So we are going to still study our options there. So for the time being, we are not lifting a finger in it”, said  Lacierda at the regular press briefing at the Palace yesterday.
He refused to state categorically that the presence of the Chinese war ship in Philippine territory was a breach of sovereignty. “We’re investigating. I cannot give you or hazard you a reason why the frigate was there. That will be investigated,” he said.          Fernan J. Angeles, AFP