Zarate: Balikatan exercises will only heighten tension between US, China

Bayan Muna party-list Representative Carlos Isagani Zarate on Wednesday said the Balikatan exercises between Filipino and American troops would only heighten the tension between the United States and China and would later place the Philippines in the middle of this tension.

The progressive lawmaker said it would best for the Philippines to assert its sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea, "without playing one superpower against the other."

"If this competition for dominance escalates, we will surely be crushed in the middle of it all. What can be done now is to call for a de-escalation of tensions in the WPS and to demilitarize the area," Zarate said in a statement.

"The Philippines should be in the forefront instead in the passage of Code of Conduct among claimant countries in the South China Sea that can be strictly implemented," he added.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the US military opened the 36th Balikatan Exercise last Monday. This year's military exercises will include a bilateral staff exercise, close air support training, subject matter exchanges, maritime security training, and humanitarian and civic assistance activities.

According to the AFP, the activities will be conducted within the areas of the Northern Luzon Command and Southern Luzon Command.

The exercises will be conducted amid the ongoing tension over the West Philippine Sea because of the presence of Chinese militia vessels off Julian Felipe Reef as well as the Chinese warships in Panganiban and Kagitingan Reefs.

The US government has been extending support to the Philippines when it comes to the situation in the West Philippine Sea. Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez has said the US would be willing to help if China's incursion in the region worsens.

Meanwhile, Zarate further stressed that Congress could seek the support of the Asian Parliamentary Association (AIPO) and the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) to denounce China's expansion in the resource-rich area.

"As standing members of the AIPO and the IPU, we should use these venues to gather international support to oppose Chinese expansionism and militarization of the West Philippine Sea," he said.

"We may not win through military might against China or any superpower but certainly we are strong in the legal, moral, and diplomatic arenas," Zarate added. — Anna Felicia Bajo/RSJ, GMA News