File Photo: Warships and fighter jets of Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy take part in a military display in the South China Sea.
China rebuffed Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's call for Beijing to rethink its conduct in the South China Sea on Thursday, saying China had the right to react to foreign ships or aircraft that get close to its islands.
Duterte said China has no right to repel foreign aircraft and boats passing by its artificial islands in the disputed waterway, and that he hoped China would "temper" its behaviour and stop restricting movements.
In a statement sent to Reuters, China's Foreign Ministry said the Spratly Islands are China's inherent territory and that China respects the right to freedom of navigation and overflight that all countries enjoy in the South China Sea under international law.
"But China has a right to take necessary steps to respond to foreign aircraft and ships that deliberately get close to or make incursions into the air and waters near China's relevant islands, and provocative actions that threaten the security of Chinese personnel stationed there," it said.
"China urges the relevant party to meet China halfway, and jointly protect the present good situation that has not come easily in the South China Sea," the ministry added, without elaborating.
China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei have competing claims to the Spratly archipelago, where China has rapidly turned reefs into artificial islands that appear to be military installations, from which its personnel routinely instruct foreign vessels to leave.
Duterte has a policy of engagement with Beijing, in the hope of securing billions of dollars in grants, loans and investments, and has rejected criticism that he is acquiescing to Chinese pressure or surrendering Philippines sovereignty.
However, instead of blaming China for building and militarising islands in disputed waters, he has said the United States was at fault for not blocking the construction when it started.
China has been angered by the United States in particular sending military ships and aircraft close to Chinese-occupied islands in the South China Sea in the name of freedom of navigation, saying the operations are highly provocative and potentially dangerous.
President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday urged China to temper its behavior in the South China Sea in a rare rebuke of Beijing."You cannot create an island and say that the air above this artificial island is yours. That is wrong. Those waters are considered international sea and the right of innocent passage is guaranteed,” Duterte said during an event at the presidential palace in Manila as quoted by local media.He made the remarks in front of business leaders and diplomats, including U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim, in reaction to recent reports of China warning Philippine military aircraft patrolling near artificial islands in the South China Sea.Duterte fires military officials for alleged corruption"I hope China would temper its behavior. I do not want to quarrel with China," he added.Reports circulated last week of Chinese military outposts warning U.S. and Philippine military planes but with a more aggressive approach towards Filipinos."Philippine military aircraft! I’m warning you again. Leave immediately, or you will bear responsibility for all the consequences!" a voice on a radio transmission suspected of coming from the artificial islands was heard saying.The incident came even as the Duterte administration sought to downplay Manila’s maritime dispute with China.Philippines' Duterte sacks 20 for graft in military medical buysBeijing claims almost all of the South China Sea. Southeast Asian nations Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam have overlapping claims on the waters.The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague concluded in 2016 that Beijing's claims to areas of the resource-rich sea have no legal basis in an arbitration launched by the Philippines, whose “sovereign rights” it said China had violated. China rejected the ruling.
China doesn’t own airspace over disputed sea: Duterte
At least 20 top military officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Medical Center have been fired by President Rodrigo Duterte over corruption allegations, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque confirmed Monday.Roque said Duterte has ordered relief and court martial proceedings against the military brass due to anomalous purchases and fraudulent transactions which include ghost purchasing, splitting of contracts to circumvent mandatory bidding processes and creating fictitious suppliers.Roque claimed the “conspiracy” and “institutional corruption” at the country’s main military hospital had been taking place before the Duterte administration.He revealed that Duterte was “aggravated” and “ballistic” because he had recently ordered the release of an additional 50 million pesos ($935,038) to the hospital to ensure it would have sufficient funds for the medical requirements of all members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.In a separate news conference, Military Chief of Staff Carlito Galvez Jr. vowed to fix the “systemic corruption” at the institution in one month.“We need to cleanse the institution. I have no tolerance for corruption,” Galvez said.He added that an investigation by the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) of the hospital’s transactions was triggered by a complaint of irregular transactions and ghost deliveries received from the Office of the President last May.He revealed that the ISAFP found 17 questionable transactions involving around 17 million pesos ($317,855) but noted that he has ordered the investigating unit to probe more contracts that would bring the total money involved to 200 million pesos ($3.74 million).Aside from the probe to be conducted by the deputy ombudsman for the military and other law enforcement offices, the sacked military officials will undergo court martial proceedings where they will be given the opportunity to be heard.Philippines' Duterte sacks 20 for graft in military medical buysPhilippines's Moro group thanks Turkey for peace efforts
Duterte fires military officials for alleged corruption
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has fired 20 people, including colonels and a general, over accusations of fraud and graft in purchases of military medical supplies, his spokesman said on Monday, the latest step in a sweeping battle on graft.Reining in government corruption was a key election plank for Duterte, who has been a big supporter of the security forces, promising equipment and boosting their budget and salaries to help tackle crime, drugs and armed rebellions.Those sacked were accused of involvement in 17 cases of bogus purchases of supplies, drugs and equipment at inflated prices, the spokesman, Harry Roque, told reporters.Civilians and military officials were among those sacked. The servicemen faced a court martial, he added.Inside the Bangladesh prime minister's war on drugsDuterte was "personally aggravated and angered", having recently ordered that 50 million pesos ($936,908) be made available to the main military hospital where the offences took place, Roque said.Military chief Carlito Galvez said he was angered to learn that men in uniform had profited by inflating the prices of prosthetics bought for soldiers who had lost limbs in battle.In his campaign against corruption, Duterte has sacked dozens of officials, including many of his own appointees. 
Philippines' Duterte sacks 20 for graft in military medical buys