US backs Philippines over China despite reef pullout
The Peninsula
Washington: The United States said on Monday it backed Manila s freedom of navigation in the South China Sea after a Philippine ship left a flashpoint...
Washington: The United States said on Monday it backed Manila's freedom of navigation in the South China Sea after a Philippine ship left a flashpoint reef, leading Beijing to declare "indisputable sovereignty."
"There's no legal basis for the PRC's maritime claims in the South China Sea and the dangerous ways in which it attempts to enforce those claims put Filipino lives and livelihood at risk," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters, using the official name for the People's Republic of China.
"It is up to the Philippines to decide how they operate their vessels in areas where it enjoys the freedom of navigation in the high seas under international law," Miller said.
"We continue to support our Philippine allies," he said.
Beijing claims most of the South China Sea despite an international tribunal ruling that its assertions have no merit, and it has acted aggressively against Philippine government vessels at Sabina Shoal and other disputed features in the strategic waterway.