PH-China agreement on RORE resulted in 15 incident-free missions —DFA

The provisional understanding between the Philippines and China on the rotation and resupply (RORE) missions to the BRP Sierra Madre at Ayungin Shoal has resulted in 15 incident-free missions to troops stationed at BRP Sierra Madre, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

“The provisional understanding has been in place for two years, since July 2024. We have conducted 15 incident-free resupply missions.” Deputy Assistant Secretary Rogelio Villanueva Jr, DFA spokesperson for Maritime Affairs, told reporters during a briefing Tuesday.

Villanueva was responding to a query whether the government still sees value in this “understanding” after the recent attack by Chinese Coast Guard personnel resulted in injuries to Filipino soldiers guarding the Philippine Military Outpost BRP Sierra Madre.

He said since the agreement, the government has successfully brought supplies to the Filipino soldiers, which “shows that the provisional understanding has worked.”

The Philippines and China agreed on a “provisional arrangement” for rotation and resupply (RORE) missions to the BRP Sierra Madre at Ayungin Shoal in July 2024, when then Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo was leading the agency.

The provisional understanding was publicly announced in 2024, stating that both China and the Philippines agreed to the arrangement and that it would not prejudice each other’s positions in the South China Sea.

The announcement, along with details released by the DFA in 2024, also noted that the Philippines and the PRC had reached an understanding on the provisional arrangement for the resupply of daily necessities and rotation missions to the BRP Sierra Madre at Ayungin Shoal, with both countries acknowledging the importance of de-escalating tensions in the region and managing disagreements through dialogue and consultation.

The issue with the provisional understanding resurfaced after Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan said the Philippines violated the “Agreement,” alleging that Filipino soldiers were constructing something on the BRP Sierra Madre.

In an interview on July 22, Jing said, “So our people found your soldiers… They’re doing some construction work on the ship, so we sent boats to check… That’s against the spirit of the provisional agreement.”

In a statement released days later, DFA clarified that the Provisional Understanding with China “is a set of principles and approaches observed by both sides in order to avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation in the conduct of the Philippines’ routine rotation and resupply (RORE) missions for daily necessities to the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal. “

The DFA also said that it is neither a grant nor a request for permission from any foreign government, adding that “it does not recognize any foreign jurisdiction over Philippine waters, and was agreed on the express understanding that it does not prejudice national positions.”

The DFA also stated that the “understanding” “does not require the Philippines to seek permission to undertake RORE missions, nor does it allow boarding and inspection of Philippine vessels, and, above all, it does not concede the Philippines’ sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction.”

“Nowhere in the provisional understanding does it require the Philippines to seek permission from China or allow the boarding and inspection of Philippine vessels. It also does not prohibit the Philippines from undertaking any act in the exercise of our sovereign rights. So, just to be clear,” said Villanueva.

He also responded to questions pertaining to Ambassador Jing’s statement that “China will never accept” the 2016 Arbitral Award, even if both China and the Philippines are pushing for the immediate conclusion of the Code of Conduct or COC.

“That is his point of view. Of course, we also have our core interests when we enter the COC negotiations,” Villanueva said.

"Again, it will depend on the discussions within the COC. We note that the members of the Joint Working Group on the COC are part of the ASEAN family,” he added. —AOL, GMA News