DND in no rush to conclude China militarizing Spratlys

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana–PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

Government experts are checking pictures of supposedly new military facilities built by China on islands in disputed parts of the South China Sea, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said on Monday.

Lorenzana said that if the pictures provided by the American think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) were proven to be accurate, then the Philippines would file a diplomatic protest against China.

“We’re still studying if there are additional (structures) because the pictures I saw that were shown by CSIS, there seems to be no changes,” Lorenzana said.

“But the experts are looking at it now to see if there were additional (structures),” he added.

Missile shelters

The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, which is part of the CSIS, last week said that new satellite photos showed missile shelters and radar and communication sites being built on Fiery Cross, Mischief and Subi Reefs.

“We are not really experts so they’re checking if these are new,” Lorenzana said.

If it were proven that the structures were new, Lorenzana said he would recommend to the Department of Foreign Affairs the filing of a formal protest.

“Of course, especially if it’s in our EEZ (exclusive economic zone). We’ll need to file a protest for that,” Lorenzana said.
Lorenzana said the Philippines had yet to begin construction of new structures on Pag-asa Island, the biggest island controlled by the Philippines in the Spratlys.

“Not yet. The procurement process is too slow,” the defense chief said.

Lorenzana earlier said that planned construction activities might take longer than expected as the government had to re-bid portions of the construction project.

Lorenzana said that the government had an existing contract to develop the island but this might have to be renegotiated.

During a visit to Pag-asa in April, Lorenzana said the government had set aside P1.6 billion to turn it into a tourist attraction and marine research center.

More structures

Besides repairing the runway, the government had been planning to build a fish port, a radio station, power plant, desalination plant, and an ice plant in Pagasa, while the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources will set up a marine research facility.

Lorenzana said seven other islands in the Spratlys controlled by the Philippines would also get P20 million each for development of structures there.

President Rodrigo Duterte had led a shift in international policy from one largely focused on the United States to one that puts higher priority to relations with China.

Mr. Duterte had repeatedly ranted about what he said were unequal relations between the United States and the Philippines, using as example hand-me-down military equipment that the US government had been turning over to the Philippine military.