China Snubs ‘Gunboat Diplomacy’ As US, Philippines Kick Off War Games In South China Sea

Nearly 17,000 Filipino and American troops began a three-week joint combat training exercise in the Philippines on) involving maritime drills in the South China Sea where Manila and Beijing have sparred over maritime borders.
France and Australia, which have ramped up defence ties with Philippines in the face of China's aggressive behaviour in the South China Sea, will join the maritime exercises to be conducted for the first time outside Philippine territorial waters.
The annual Balikatan or "shoulder-to-shoulder" drills, which will run from April 22 to May 10, come amid an escalating diplomatic row and maritime encounters between the Philippines and China including the use of water cannon and heated verbal exchanges.
Meanwhile, China says it is committed to resolving maritime disputes with other countries through dialogue but will not allow itself to be abused.
The sea should not be an arena where countries can flex their military force or engage in "gunboat diplomacy", added Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission and China's second-highest-ranking military official.
(With inputs from Reuters)
Join Nitin Gokhale's Strategic Group WhatsApp Channel to get the latest updates from articles on our website and videos on our KZhead Channel: www.whatsapp.com/channel/0029...
Since many of our well-wishers requested a UPI payment id to contribute and support us, here’s the link, which gives us 100% of what you choose: stratnewsglobal.com/support-us/
You can also click and buy a KZhead Super Thanks(the heart icon where you liked this video), which directly supports StratNewsGlobal, with 70% of your chosen amount.
Leave your comments, questions, and feedback. Like and share our videos. Subscribe to our KZhead channel. Click on the 🔔icon to get notified of our latest uploads.
To get instant updates join our telegram circle - t.me/stratnewsglobalbroadcast