China protests planned Philippine trip to Spratlys

MANILA, Philippines—China has expressed deep concern over a planned trip by five Filipino lawmakers to a Philippine-occupied island in the disputed Spratly Islands.

Chinese Embassy spokesman Ethan Sun said the trip to what Manila calls Pag-asa Island in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) will go against a 2002 regional pact that discourages provocative actions and will serve to “sabotage” bilateral ties.

Sun said Tuesday that China will relay its concern to the Philippine government.

Representative Walden Bello said the trip scheduled for Wednesday is aimed at peacefully asserting the Philippines’ claim to the island and surrounding territory and is not part of any military operation.

Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam also have territorial feuds in the region.