China renews call to pull out US missile in PH

The armies of the US and the Philippines conduct subject matter expert exchange about Typhon midrange capability missile last June 27 in Laoag, Ilocos Norte. PHOTO FROM THE US ARMY PACIFIC

MANILA, Philippines — China has renewed its call for the pull out of a United States’ mid range capability missile in the country.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning made this call in response to a Reuters report which stated that the US deployed its Typhon missile launchers to a new location in the country.

“We once again call on the Philippines to heed the call from regional countries and their peoples, correct the wrongdoing as soon as possible, quickly pull out the Typhon missile system as publicly pledged, and stop going further down the wrong path,” Mao said in a regular press conference on Thursday night.

“Let me stress again that by bringing this strategic offensive weapon into this part of the world, the Philippines is essentially creating tensions and antagonism in the region and inciting geopolitical confrontation and an arms race,” she continued. “This is a highly dangerous move and an extremely irresponsible choice for its own people, the people of the other Southeast Asian countries, and regional security.”

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. has already addressed China’s objections to the missiles before, saying that “it is not targeted against specific countries.”

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“Instead, it is targeted against security risks, threats, and challenges,” Teodoro said in a statement in December last year.

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The Typhon missile arrived in the country from the United States on April 11, 2024 and was first used during its bilateral war games with the country.

The Philippine Army said the ground-based missile system was also used for the bilateral Army drills between Manila and Washington, which was already finished on Sept. 22, 2024.

However, Army spokesperson Col. Louie Dema-ala has said the missile system will stay in the country until further notice as both countries conduct evaluations if it will be used in future drills.

When asked about the whereabouts of the missile system, Dema-ala told INQUIRER.net on Friday: “Sorry, but I have no information.”

Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Romeo Brawner Jr. has even said that he wants for the Typhon missile to stay in the country “forever” and that he hopes the country could acquire its own.

The deployment of Typhon missile in the country comes amid mounting tensions in the West Philippine Sea due to Manila and Beijing’s overlapping claims.

Beijing’s actions are based on its assertion of sovereignty in almost the entire South China Sea, including most of the West Philippine Sea, or the western section of the country inside its 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

In 2012, Manila and Beijing had a tense standoff over Panatag Shoal, with the former withdrawing its ships from the shoal that led to the latter having an effective control of its lagoon to date.

A year later, Manila lodged an arbitration case against Beijing after this standoff which led to a historic 2016 arbitral award that effectively rejected the latter’s sweeping claims in the West Philippine Sea.

To date, the country has its own  medium-range supersonic cruise missile dubbed as “BrahMos” which has a range of 290 to 400 kilometers that could travel at Mach 2.8, or about three times faster than the speed of sound.