There is a serious discussion on future maritime cooperation between the Philippines and the United States, which includes conducting joint patrols in the West Philippine Sea, according to Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel 'Babe' Romualdez.
Romualdez made the statement during the sidelines of an event organized by the Makati Business Club on Tuesday.
"I think in the next couple of months, you will see more activities as far as our defense cooperation with the US is concerned. It's part of the program and I think we are going to have these enhanced patrols in the West Philippine Sea fairly quickly," he said.
Romualdez, however, declined to expound more on the status of the joint patrol talks between the two countries and only said "it's on the table."
"We will let you know when the patrols will take place, but it’s on the table," the envoy said. "Pinag-uusapan at malalim ang pinag-uusapan [Talks are ongoing and they are in-depth talks]."
The idea of joint patrols in the West Philippine Sea was also floated by former ambassador to the United States Jose Cuisia Jr., citing the continuous aggressive behavior of Beijing towards Filipino fisherfolks in the South China Sea.
“My suggestion is joint Philippine-US patrols. We’re quite concerned about the actions taken by China and only the US can help the Philippines counter such an aggressive stance taken by China,” Cuisia said.
"We have seen the militarization by China of those features in the South China Sea so that is why we are quite concerned about the actions taken by China. I think it is only the US who can help the Philippines counter such an aggressive stand taken by China," he added.
United States Ambassador MaryKay Carlson also noted that Washington is ready to engage with the country regarding more maritime cooperation.
“We’re certainly working with the Philippine Coast Guard in that regard whether it’s joint patrols or any other activities but the important thing is it will be done in conjunction with our Philippine partners,” Carlson said.
“Our two militaries have a long history of very solid cooperation. We have close to 500 engagements, some of these large engagements like Balikatan, that involved thousands of soldiers and airmen and marines on both sides,” she added.
On Tuesday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reminded China that Filipinos are free to fish in Ayungin Shoal and "take whatever they are due" under Philippine and international law.
This comes after the Chinese Coast Guard reportedly drove off Filipino fishermen in the area, which is part of the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), weeks after President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. reached an agreement with China.
