Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has summoned the Chinese ambassador on Tuesday to personally convey his displeasure over the activation of a laser against Philippine coast guard boats and fishermen, an allegedly dangerous maneuver reported on Monday.
Marcos wanted to convey to the ambassador, Huang Xilian, his «grave concern» about what happened in the waters of the South China Sea, a common area of dispute between countries in the region over sovereignty disputes, according to the newspaper ‘Inquirer’.
The Chinese Embassy explained that, at the meeting, the parties exchanged views with a view to «strengthening dialogue» and responding «appropriately» to the «maritime differences» between the two countries.
The incident allegedly took place on February 6. The Philippine authorities have claimed that one of their ships was illuminated by a powerful green light activated less than eight kilometers away and temporarily blinded the crew of a Coast Guard vessel.
The attacked vessel was participating in a Philippine Navy supply and rotation mission in the Ayungin sandbar area, according to a Coast Guard official, Artemio Abu.
The incident is not new, as on other occasions the Philippine forces have denounced dangerous maneuvers by Chinese ships in this maritime area and in some of them laser lights have also been used.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
