China warns as US, Philippines stage combat drills

China warned on Wednesday that a deepening security alliance between the United States and the Philippines should not harm its security and territorial interests and interfere in long-simmering territorial disputes in the South China Sea.

When asked to comment on the combat exercises between American and Filipino forces that started on Tuesday in the Philippines, the Chinese Embassy in Manila on Wednesday issued a statement by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin, who said that such drills “should not target any third party and should be conducive to regional peace and stability.” Wang did not say how China would respond if it concludes that the US-Philippine security cooperation was hurting Beijing’s core interests. In Washington, the US and Philippine defence and foreign secretaries met on Tuesday to discuss the development of nine Philippine military camps, where American forces have been allowed to stay indefinitely under the 2014 EDCA.

“These sites will support combined training exercises and interoperability between our forces to ensure that we’re even better prepared for future crises,” Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said.