MANILA: China is the “biggest disruptor” of peace in Southeast Asia, the Philippine defence chief said on Tuesday (Aug 27), as tensions between Manila and Beijing over disputed reefs and waters in the South China Sea escalate.
Gilberto Teodoro made the remarks at a conference of the US Indo-Pacific Command after repeated confrontations between Philippine and Chinese vessels in the waterway over the past 12 months.
Beijing claims almost the entirety of the sea, brushing aside rival claims by other countries, including the Philippines, and an international ruling that its stance has no legal basis.
China’s claims include reefs and waters inside the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone, which extends about 370km from the country’s coastal waters.
“China … is the biggest disruptor of international peace in the ASEAN region,” Teodoro said, referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
