Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

The Philippines intends to buy intermediate-range missile launchers from the US, a move revealed by Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, according to the Financial Times. A Chinese observer told the Global Times on Monday that a recent series of actions by the Philippines shows that it is on track to become a real troublemaker in the South China Sea.

Teodoro said Manila was looking at getting mid-range capability launchers, which the US brought to the Philippines in April for two bilateral military exercises, as reported by the Financial Times on Sunday.

According to the report, the deployment of the Typhon launcher in April remains in the Philippines after the exercises were finished. US media outlet The War Zone said that the Typhon system is in the Philippines for its inaugural Indo-Pacific deployment.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on September 19 that the US deployment in the Philippines is a move to turn back the wheel of history. It gravely threatens regional countries' security, incites geopolitical confrontation, and has aroused high vigilance and concerns of countries in the region. We urge relevant country to heed the call of countries in the region, correct the wrongdoing as soon as possible, stop inciting military confrontation, quickly pull out the missile system as publicly pledged, and avoid going further down the wrong path.

Philippine's potential purchase of US missile launcher came after the enactment by the Philippines of its "Maritime Zones Act" and "Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act" on Friday, which prompted the Chinese Foreign Ministry to summon the Philippines' Ambassador to China to make serious protests.

Xu Liping, director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times that the Philippines should assess the situation in the South China Sea with a rational perspective, recognizing that the so-called purchase of any weapons will neither be helpful nor carry any significance.

Xu noted that in addition to the problems in the South China Sea remaining unresolved, the Philippines' actions could also exacerbate the current situation. In other words, the Philippines can be viewed as more than just a troublemaker, it contributes to regional instability.

The Philippines' actions are aimed at drawing the US into providing more aid, while also serving its own domestic political interests, by positioning itself as a so-called hardliner on the South China Sea to boost its domestic support, Xu said.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian on Monday responded to a statement by the US State Department supporting the Philippines in enacting the so-called Philippine maritime act, saying that over the years, for the sake of its geopolitical agenda, the US has been instigating the Philippines to engage in acts of infringement and provocations in the South China Sea, as if the area needed any more instability. This vicious intention is so clear for all to see. 

While urging other countries to abide by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the US refuses to join it, which fully reveals its hypocrisy and double standards. The South China Sea arbitration in itself violates UNCLOS and is a political farce through and through, and the so-called arbitral award is illegal, null and void, Lin said.