Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya. PHOTO: Arnel Tacson, INQUIRER.net
The National Security Council (NSC) is not worried about the report that a US Army intelligence analyst sold sensitive information to China, including details of US military exercises and forces in the Philippines.
“We are not concerned or worried because the drills are routinary or regular activities and no sensitive information is disclosed,” said Assistant NSC Director General Jonathan Malaya told the Inquirer on Friday.
Being treaty allies, the Philippines and the United States hold regular military drills, including the annual Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) exercises, which aims to strengthen the defense capabilities of both countries.
READ: West Philippine Sea: PH holds joint patrols with US, Canada, Australia
In a separate message to the Inquirer on Friday, Col. Francel Margareth Padilla, spokesperson for the Armed Forces of the Philippines, said the military has been vigilant in safeguarding the integrity and loyalty of its personnel when asked if they were concerned that there could be Filipino soldiers being offered payoffs by China in exchange for information.
According to Padilla, the AFP has dedicated units that conduct thorough background investigations to ensure that the ranks remain committed to their duties and the country’s security.
“While the AFP remains alert to any potential external influences, we have stringent measures in place to detect and prevent any such compromises within our forces,” she said.
Spooked by shadow
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), meanwhile, said China was only spooked by its own shadow doing when it accused the Philippines of constructing a “forward deployment base” at Escoda (Sabina) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
Commodore Jay Tarriela, the PCG spokesperson for the WPS, issued the statement as a response to Chinese-state run Global Times accusation that Manila would be sending a second coast guard vessel to Escoda to build a forward deployment base “in the form of a semi-permanent floating platform.”
“While their unfounded fears regarding the Philippines potentially establishing a forward deployment base in Escoda Shoal are too absurd to warrant a response, this behavior reveals the mindset and actions of the PRC (People’s Republic of China),” he said.
“Their suspicions about the Philippines engaging in such actions stem from their own pattern of unlawfully occupying maritime areas in the South China Sea, followed by illegal reclamation and provocative militarization of those features,” he added.
He stressed China only wanted to distract the international community from its unlawful actions in the WPS.