According to the official statement, the maneuvers of the Southern Theater Command of the People’s Liberation Army included the evaluation of surveillance capabilities, alert patrolling and joint combat operations, with the aim of testing the readiness of the forces assigned to these tasks.

Military authorities assured that any attempt to alter the situation in the South China Sea or generate tensions in the region is under control.

Theater troops maintain a high state of alert and are prepared to thwart any coordinated action that seeks to undermine regional peace and stability, the statement added.

In the South China Sea has recently been the stage of several incidents between the Chinese coast guards and the Philippines, which led to renewed bilateral tensions.

Beijing reaffirmed that there is freedom of navigation in this region but expressed its disagreement with the intention of some nations to generate confrontation and exclusionary blocs in the area.

Relations between the two neighboring nations have deteriorated considerably since the arrival to power in Manila of a president who favors an alliance with the United States.

In fact, the US State Department threatened to resort to the Mutual Defense Treaty that Washington has with the Philippines to support the latter’s actions in the South China Sea.

mh/rgh/idm