PH Navy: China provoking us to fire the first shot

China’s heightened aggression against Filipino soldiers in the West Philippine Sea seeks to provoke the country into "firing the first shot," the Philippine Navy said Thursday.

“They would like to push us to fire the first shot. ‘Yun ang labanan diyan (that’s the battle). You should understand. [The] Chinese thought papatol tayo sa maling paraan (we will retaliate inappropriately),” Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad said.

Trinidad issued the remark after seven Filipino troops were hurt while performing rotation and resupply mission in Ayungin Shoal. One of the seven Filipinos lost a thumb during the incident. 

Members of the Chinese Coast Guar personnel also boarded the Philippines' rigid-hulled inflatable boats and seized some firearms.

Asked what will happen should the country be provoked, Trinidad said he did not want to speculate.

But he said that the country’s actions should always be within the bounds of the law.

“Our actions will always be guided by the rules of engagement. It will always be within the bounds of international law. We are here to assert our sovereignty. We are here to ensure our sovereign rights are protected,” he said.

“[G]agawa siya ng mga paraan na ikaw ang magkakamali... Ano protection mo doon? WIthin the bounds of law dapat lahat ng aksyon mo,” he later added.

(They will do things so you will make the wrong move. What will be your protection? You should always act within the bounds of the law.)

Meanwhile, Trinidad said there will be “appropriate changes” to ensure that personnel would no longer be hurt.

“We will do more planning and there will be changes, you will see changes,” he said.

The Ayungin Shoal, which China calls Ren'ai Reef, is located 105 nautical miles west of Palawan and is within the country's 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

The Philippines, through the Department of Foreign Affairs, earlier denounced "the illegal and aggressive actions of Chinese authorities that resulted in personnel injury and vessel damage."

The Pentagon also slammed China's recent actions against Filipino troops, saying that this kind of behavior was provocative, reckless, and unnecessary. According to Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder, Washington will continue to support its ally, Manila.

In 2013, the Philippines challenged China’s legal basis for its vast claim in the South China Sea before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands. 

Manila won the case in a landmark award in 2016 after the tribunal invalidated China's assertions.

Beijing, however, does not recognize the ruling. --VAL, GMA Integrated News