Philippines ‘adding fuel to fire’ over Taiwan independence: Chinese envoy | World News

A Chinese envoy The Philippines said it was “adding fuel to the fire” over Taiwan’s independence by allowing the United States access to military bases near the Taiwan Strait under an expanded defense agreement.

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While Manila adheres to the one-China principle, China’s ambassador to the Philippines said the decision “has aroused widespread and serious concern among the Chinese people.” Huang Xilian was speaking at a China-Philippines relations forum in Manila on Friday.

The Philippines this month identified four new military bases that the United States could use under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).Three are near Taiwan and the fourth faces a disputed region South China Sea.

The new location brings the number of U.S.-accessible military bases in the Philippines to nine under an agreement signed in 2014 that allows the U.S. to permanently station rotating troops and build and operate facilities at those bases.

“It is clear that the US intends to use the new EDCA site to interfere in the situation across the Taiwan Strait in order to achieve its geopolitical goals and advance its anti-China agenda,” Huang said, adding that this was at the expense of the interests of the Philippines and the region.

The U.S. said in February that the new site, which had not yet been identified at the time, would allow for more rapid support for humanitarian and climate-related disasters in the Philippines and address other shared challenges.

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Philippine Defense Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said earlier this month that the sites are “very important” and “very strategic,” including areas near the South China Sea, a key route for some $3 trillion worth of traded goods. He said it is the Philippines’ “responsibility to the international community” to ensure security in the region.

The United States and the Philippines kicked off their largest flagship military exercise on Tuesday in a high-profile display of their renewed alliance, including live-fire training against decommissioned ships near the South China Sea.

That same week, China held its own drills near Taiwan after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen returned from a visit to the United States, where she met with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and other U.S. lawmakers.

Huang said China “will not renounce the use of force” and reserves “the option to take all necessary measures” to guard against external interference and all separatist activities on the Taiwan issue.

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He said “some” linked the decision behind the sites to the safety of the 150,000 Filipinos working in Taiwan, but added that foreign workers would be better served if the sites were not available in the Philippines.