Latest Chinese bullying not enough to trigger treaty with US: Brawner

ARMED Forces chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr said China’s harassment of Philippine vessels near the Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea last Sunday, which he personally witnessed, is not enough to trigger the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) with United States.

“The incident recently, even the water cannoning and ramming (of our vessels), these are not enough grounds for us to invoke the MDT,” Brawner told reporters in Camp Aguinaldo yesterday.

Under the 1951 MDT, the two countries recognize that an armed attack in the Pacific area on either of the parties “would be dangerous to its own peace and safety,” thus they would act to meet the “common dangers” in accordance with constitutional processes.

An attack “is deemed to include an armed attack on the metropolitan territory of either of the parties, or on the Island territories under its jurisdiction in the Pacific Ocean, its armed forces, public vessels or aircraft in the Pacific.”

Brawner noted his phone conversation with Gen. Charles Quinton Brown Jr, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the US armed forces, last Monday. One of the issues they discussed, Brawner said, were “steps that we can do together… to promote the rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific region particularly in the West Philippine Sea.”

Brawner said this does not necessarily mean that the Americans will provide direct help in next Philippine resupply missions at Ayungin Shoal.

“Definitely they are willing to help because under the Mutual Defense Treaty, if an armed attack happens to either of us, whether the Philippines or the US, the other party to that treaty should be able to support the other,” he said.

In a TV interview on Tuesday, Brawner said there was still no need to invoke the MDT because the treaty specifically says an armed attack.

“There is still no need to invoke the MDT because the MDT states armed attack, and cannoning is not considered an armed attack,” the military chief.

Brawner said the Chinese are employing “gray zone tactics” in the West Philippine Sea. He called these as “illegal, coercive, aggressive, dangerous and deceptive actions.”

Brawner joined last Sunday’s resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal,