Duterte tells China: No need to say those nasty words

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, in his speech during the Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) Convention at the SMX Convention Center in Davao City on August 17, 2018, reiterates that his administration remains committed to preserve and defend the most cherished democratic values in the country. RENE LUMAWAG/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

President Rodrigo Duterte slammed anew China for its “nasty words” against Filipino pilots conducting patrols over the South China Sea.

“You know very well that we will not attack anybody there. And we are a claimant of the group of islands,” Duterte said in a speech during the Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) in Davao City on Friday, August 17.

“I told you we are not prepared to go to war with you, so why do you have to say those nasty words? There’s no need for that. We are your friend,” he added.

The President also maintained that the Asian giant cannot just build man-made islands in the South China Sea and claim the region as theirs.

Duterte issued this rare rebuke against Beijing after a video clip from London-based broadcast network BBC showed that Philippine and United States (US) planes were given radio warnings by Chinese forces to stay away from its artificial islands.

Responding to this last Tuesday, August 14, the Philippine leader urged China to ‘temper’ its behavior in the region, saying that it is not right for a country to build artificial islands in international waters like South China Sea and claim the airspace above the territory.

“The right of innocent passage is guaranteed. It does not need any permission to sail through the open seas,” he earlier said.

But China rebuffed Duterte’s remarks.

In a Reuters report, the China’s Foreign Ministry said while it “respects the right to freedom of navigation and overflight that all countries enjoy in the South China Sea under international law,” Beijing still had to take necessary actions.

“China has a right to take necessary steps to respond to foreign aircraft and ships that deliberately get close to or make incursions into the air and waters near China’s relevant islands, and provocative actions that threaten the security of Chinese personnel stationed there,” it told Reuters.

Duterte’s rare tirade on Beijing’s behavior earned praises from former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, noting that nine out of 10 Filipinos would be “encouraged and inspired” by this manifestation of the Chief Executive’s “positive leadership.”

Meanwhile, for Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, Duterte’s statement only showed that Philippines and China have a “closer relationship” because, according to him, “the closer you are, the more you can tell each other your feelings.”