According to Rappler’s report, Marcos made statements about China’s concerns about the 4 new bases that are allowed to be accessed for the deployment of US troops under the EDCA.
“If they’re not going to attack us, then there’s no reason to worry that we’re going to attack them,” Marcos said. What we are doing is simply protecting our republic and our lands.” used the phrase.
The US has access to 5 military bases in the Philippines
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning, in his statements at two separate press conferences on April 4 and 6, criticized the US policies in the region, describing them as “selfish and useless”.
Ning emphasized that these policies of the USA did not cause anything other than endangering peace in the region, fueling instability and increasing tensions.
The Philippines allowed the US access to 4 more bases in the country on February 2 to counter China’s growing influence in the Asia-Pacific region under the EDCA signed between the two countries in 2014.
The US has access to 5 military bases in the Philippines under EDCA.
South China Sea dispute
The South China Sea has been at the center of sovereignty disputes between the countries of the region since the Second World War, when the riparian countries gained their independence.
China claims sovereignty over 80 percent of the South China Sea with the map it first published in 1947, while Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia also claim rights in the region rich in underground resources, as well as the Philippines.
The USA, as well as the countries in the region, opposes China’s construction of bases on the disputed islands in the region and its presence with its military elements as well as civilian ship fleets.