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DND stands by ‘floating object’ account

November 23, 2022 Zaida I. Delos Reyes 220 views

CONTRARY to the account of China’s foreign ministry, the Department of National Defense (DND) on Tuesday night said that they are standing by the account made by the military that the unidentified floating object seen near the Pag-asa Island was “rudely taken” by Chinese coast guard from a Philippine vessel in waters off Pag-asa Island on Sunday.

“We stand by the accounts of our personnel in the area that, contrary to the narrative of the Chinese side, the debris being towed by a Philippine vessel to Naval Station Emilio Liwanag for inspection was rudely taken by personnel from CCGV5203,” DND Officer-in-Charge (OIC) Senior Undersecretary Jose Faustino Jr. said.

The statement was released by the DND after China denied that its coast guard forcibly took the object being towed by the Philippine vessel by cutting the towing line and blocking the Filipino forces.

Earlier, the Chinese foreign ministry claimed that the object was taken by its personnel after a “friendly consultation” with the team from Naval Station Emilio Liwanag (NSEL).

In line with this, Faustino said authorities were also investigating the reported explosions, allegedly artillery fire, after the incident with the Chinese coast guard.

He said the DND was awaiting additional reports on the two consecutive incidents near Pag-asa Island.

“The situation is still developing; thus, we cannot provide additional details at this time,” Faustino said.

Faustino also said that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and other relevant government agencies, were working together to ensure safety within the area.

“Events such as these are exactly why we continue to advocate for open lines of communication and dialogue mechanisms. We support the diplomatic efforts of Philippine government agencies to engage our Chinese counterparts to address the incident,” he added.

It can be recalled that on Monday, China issued a statement and denied forcibly taking the debris that was said to be from a rocket recently launched by China.

They also denied blocking the Philippine Navy boat and forcefully retrieving the object at the scene.