China "expels" Philippine aircraft and naval ships from the East Sea

China has at least six times brazenly demanded that Philippine military aircraft and naval ships leave disputed areas in the East Sea.

According to Reuters, the above statement was made by Vice Admiral Alexander Lopez, Commander of the Philippine military in charge of the East Sea region, during a hearing before the country's Senate on May 7.

Satellite images show China reclaiming Fiery Cross Reef in the East Sea (Photo: AFP)

“While we were conducting military aircraft patrols in international airspace, our military aircraft were radioed by China to leave,” Lopez told Philippine senators, stressing that the country’s military aircraft ignored those warnings.

“The Chinese side loudly claimed that our aircraft were flying over China’s military security zone,” Mr. Lopez added, adding that China often sends its navy and coast guard ships to the Spratly Islands but rarely sends aircraft there because the area is too far from China’s mainland.

Although Mr. Lopez did not give a specific time for such Chinese actions, a Philippine air force official said that the “chasing away” of Philippine ships and planes happened within the past three months.

This official commented that China's above action could be "to probe" whether this country can impose a special airspace control zone (Air Exclusion Zone) in the Spratly Islands in the East Sea.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Colonel Harold Cabunoc, a spokesman for the Philippine military, said that last April, a Chinese warship blatantly demanded that a Philippine maritime patrol aircraft near Xubi Shoal leave the area.

Previously, many recent satellite images showed that China was vigorously converting 7 reefs that China illegally occupied in the Hoang Sa archipelago into artificial islands and had built many structures, including an airport on them.

China's actions have caused concern in many Southeast Asian countries and forced the US to speak out in criticism.

The US military commander in Asia, Admiral Samuel Locklear, also warned in April that China could deploy radar and missile systems on its outpost islands and establish a special airspace control zone after illegally claiming sovereignty over the reefs that China is rapidly reclaiming.

Also during the hearing, Mr. Lopez said that China had reclaimed the seven reefs mentioned above, which had an area of ​​only a few thousand square meters, into 11 hectares.

Previously, in late 2013, China was criticized by both the US and Japan when it unilaterally declared the establishment of an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) over the East China Sea. Accordingly, aircraft flying through this area must declare in advance to China and comply with all instructions from this country./.

According to Vov.vn