Time has come for China to deal with the Philippines

MANILA: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Wednesday (Aug 9) denied making an agreement with China to remove a grounded warship that serves as a military outpost in the South China Sea, and said if there ever were such a deal, it should be considered rescinded.

The Philippines maintains a handful of troops aboard the World War II-era vessel named the Sierra Madre at the Second Thomas Shoal, known by Manila as Ayungin shoal, which is located inside its 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ)

China on Monday accused the Philippines of reneging on a promise made "explicitly" to remove the ship, which was grounded in 1999 to bolster its territorial claims in one of the world's most contested areas.

"I'm not aware of any such arrangement or agreement that the Philippines will remove from its own territory its ship," Marcos said in a video statement.

"And let me go further, if there does exist such an agreement, I rescind that agreement now". CNA

This street urchin thinking it is very clever to dump a piece of rotten scrap on Chinese island and it would be able to claim the island from China. The piece of scrap metal has been there rotting for the last 24 years with China asking it to be removed and with the Philippines saying they would but keeps delaying and delaying. Now with the Americans standing on their backs, the Pinoys think it would make a difference and can challenge and antagonise China. The lesson of Ukraine is too difficult for them to learn.

China's patience with the antics of the Pinoys is running thin. China has given the Pinoys an ultimatum to remove the piece of scrap metal or China would remove it when convenient. With the trouble maker, the Americans lurking in the corner, China has tried its best not to allow the Americans to start a fire in Asia. It is not that China is afraid of the Americans. The Americans have been provoking and agitating for a war in Asia and silly Pinoys are willing to be their pawns.

China is now left with no choice but to get rid of the rotting scrap metal. China could pull it away anytime. Or China could just start a reclamation programme, and bury the scrap metal in the sand. And this is the best time for China to act when there is a hostile President in Manila. When Duterte was the President, China wanted to work closely with him and not to upset the cordial relations with the Philippines. The situation now is bad and there is no reason for China to be gracious. There is nothing to hold back China under the constant provocation of the Philippines.

Like it or not, China would be acting very soon. The only consideration is not to give the world's number one terrorist state, the USA, an excuse to raise tension in the region. Unfortunately China's kindness and restraint in the last 24 years were taken for granted. The terrorist state would want a fight. So be it. China will take the Americans head on. The Pinoy cowboys think it is fun, they are up to it to take on China with the Americans behind their back, like Ukraine with the Americans and Nato behind them. Would the Philippines be the next Ukraine to start a war in Asia? Would Marcos Junior be the next Zelensky to destroy the Philippines and the lives of Pinoys? 

How well can the antique Pinoy American 'hand downs', the tin can warships overdue for the museum, hold before they sink to the bottom of the South China Sea? For every antique warship lost, the Philippines would have to beg the Americans for more 'hand down' tin cans due for the scrap yards to replace them. The Pinoys are unable to build warships or warplanes.

Bravery and stupidity are two different things. Zelensky and the Nazi Ukrainians are good examples but the daft would never learn. Would the Pinoys also be shouting, 'Fight till the last Pinoy'?

PS. The Americans have accepted that Ukraine is a lost cause and are not hoping for peace and to disengage. The counter offensive myth is in tatters. And Russia is still too kind and not bombing Ukraine to the Stone Age. Russia should at least destroy all the airfields in Ukraine to stop everything from flying.