China begins “combat patrols” ahead of international maneuvers in the South China Sea

Recommends the Philippines not to “invite the wolf into its home” with its participation in these exercises together with the US, Japan and Australia

April 7 () –

The Chinese Army organized a “combat naval and air patrol” this Saturday on the same day that the United States, the Philippines, Japan and Australia carried out joint exercises in the waters of the South China Sea, where the territorial dispute between Manila and Beijing has seen a serious rebound in recent weeks.

The Southern Scenario Command of the Chinese Army has confirmed that these maneuvers have a reciprocal nature in relation to international exercises, as reported in a brief statement reported by the Chinese newspaper 'Global Times'.

In it, the Army assures that “all military activity aimed at disturbing stability in the South China Sea is under control” before condemning the external “interference” represented by the United States and that could aggravate this territorial conflict.

“The presence of the United States represents the greatest threat to the stability and security of the region,” the Army added before warning that the Philippine strategy of “inviting the wolf into its home” will not be well received by other countries involved in the territorial conflict “and it is most likely that the shot will end up backfiring on them.”

The Philippine Army, for its part, has assured that its exercises with the United States, Australia and Japan “demonstrated the commitment of participating countries to strengthen regional and international cooperation in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific through interoperability exercises in the maritime domain”.