Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has warned the Philippines not to accept the deployment of US medium-range missiles on its territory. According to Beijing, such a move could increase tensions in the region and ignite an arms race, reported Reuters, quoted by BTA.
Sino-Philippines relations are at a crossroads, the right solution is dialogue and consultation, Wang said during a meeting yesterday with his Filipino counterpart Enrique Manalo in Vientiane, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
According to Wang, the current challenges in bilateral ties are due to "repeated violations (by the Philippines) of bilateral consensus and commitments.
"If the Philippines accepts US medium-range missile systems on its territory, it will create tension and confrontation in the region and trigger an arms race that does not at all meet the interests and wishes of the Filipino people," said Chinese diplomat No. one.
The US has deployed "Typhoon" missiles in the Philippines. as part of joint military exercises earlier this year. During the maneuvers, however, no such missiles were fired, a Philippine military representative later specified, without clarifying how long they would remain on the territory of the island nation.
China and the Philippines have been at odds over the disputed waters of the South China Sea, and that standoff has escalated recently over Beijing's claims to some atolls in those waters, which Manila says fall within its exclusive economic zone.
Wang said that China recently concluded a temporary agreement with the Philippines on the transportation and humanitarian supplies for Zhenai Jiao in order to maintain stability in the area.
China calls "Zhenai Jiao" The second Thomas Atoll.