CANBERRA — China is putting ever-greater pressure on the Philippines to cede its sovereign rights in the South China Sea, Secretary of National Defence Gilberto Teodoro said on Nov 12 after a meeting with his Australian counterpart in Canberra.

“What we see is an increasing demand by Beijing for us to concede our sovereign rights in the area,” he said, adding that the Philippines was a “victim of Chinese aggression”.

China and the Philippines have sparred repeatedly this year over disputed areas of the South China Sea, including the Scarborough Shoal, one of Asia’s most contested features.

Teodoro’s meeting with his Australian counterpart Richard Marles, their fifth since August 2023, reflects growing security ties between the countries, both of whom have expressed concern about Chinese activity in areas of the South China Sea claimed by the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations.

The two nations signed a strategic partnership in September 2023 and held their first joint sea and air patrols in the South China Sea several months later. The Philippines also joined war games in Australia this year for the first time.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a conduit for more than US$3 trillion (S$4 trillion) of annual ship-borne commerce, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. The Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2016 said China’s claims had no legal basis, a ruling Beijing rejects.

Teodoro said China’s claims and behaviour were contrary to international law and defence deals with partners such as Australia were an important way to deter Chinese incursions.

“Although they (China) claim to act under the aegis of international law, everybody knows that what they’re doing is contrary to the tenets of international law,” he said.

“The biggest evidence of this is that nobody has actually supported their actions or activities.”

In addition to closer ties with countries including Australia and the United States, the Philippines also plans to spend at least US$33 billion on new weapons including advanced fighter jets and mid-range missiles.

Marles said Australia wanted to work more closely with the Philippine defence industry and would send an engineering assessment team to the country early 2025.

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