State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau told reporters that the U.S. The United States has called on Vietnam and other claimants to refrain from reclamation and militarization activities in contested South China Sea waters following reports that Hanoi has carried out dredging on one of the features it occupies in the Spratlys. US, CHINA REACT TO VIETNAM’S REPORTED ISLAND DREDGING On Friday, the Philippine navy took delivery of a third frigate decommissioned from the U.S. Navy in the disputed waters, which he said China opposes.īut Manila still continues to rely on Washington. He also said he wants to scale back the Philippines’ military engagements with the U.S., including scuttling a plan to carry out joint patrols with the U.S.
President Rodrigo Duterte has reached out to China to try to smooth over the territorial disputes. “If we change the training, we would probably look at putting a different force and a different capability in the Philippines versus the initial one that had been planned to go there,” he told Voice of America, referring to the initial focus on the Philippines’ territorial defense. military was prepared to change next year’s joint exercises with the Philippines to humanitarian and disaster relief training. Army’s I Corps who leads international military exercises in the Pacific, said that the U.S. You know, we will fly, we will sail anywhere within international waters and we will continue that.” State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau said she could not comment on Lorenzana’s remarks as she hadn’t seen them, but added: “Our adherence to freedom of navigation is well known. But he said they can still refuel and resupply in the Philippines after conducting such maneuvers, not before. ships and planes can use Guam or Okinawa in Japan for South China Sea missions. aircraft, ships and submarines access to designated Philippine military bases under a 2014 defense agreement. patrols - a possible departure from the current policy that allows U.S.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said that the Philippines will not allow its territory to be used as a staging ground for U.S.
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