China's foreign ministry said yesterday that China has strengthened the management of Huangyan Island in response to recent "provocative activities" by the Philippines, and some 20 fishing boats are now working in the area.
Spokesman Hong Lei made the remarks at a press conference in Beijing after a journalist asked for confirmation of a Philippine media report that said tensions had grown as nearly 100 Chinese vessels have arrived in waters off Huangyan Island.
"The number of fishing boats there is roughly the same as that in the same period in previous years. The way they operate is in accordance with China's relevant laws," Hong said.
According to the People's Daily, Voltaire Gazmin, the secretary of the Philippines' Department of National Defense, said Tuesday that the Philippines is speeding up its efforts to purchase new weapons, in a bid to "modernize its military force" in the next five years with the aim of "territorial defense." The plan involves more than 138 projects.
Gazmin also said that 58 programs have obtained permission and the government is committed to passing a $1.67 billion defense budget to facilitate the military modernization process, the People's Daily reported.
Top Philippine military officials yesterday attended the turnover ceremony of the second Hamilton-class patrol ship in the US.
According to the news from the Philippine foreign affairs secretary, some countries are helping the Philippines establish a "minimum credible defense posture," to complement its diplomatic capacity in dealing with the row with China, Xinhua reported.
Hong yesterday reiterated China's stance and voiced "firm opposition" to the Philippines' decision to involve a third party in the Huangyan Island dispute.
In another development, some banana-exporting companies in the Philippines have stopped sending their produce to China even as the Philippine government said on Tuesday that China has allowed the entry of up to 40 container vans of Philippine bananas, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
The companies reasoned that the Chinese ports are already congested, the report said.
Global Times