Beijing warns vs ‘arms race’

China has once again sent another warning to the Philippines over the deployment of the United States’ mid-range capability missile system in the country.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi cautioned his Filipino counterpart, Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo, that America’s MRC missile system “could trigger a regional arms race,” in a meeting on Saturday during the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Post-Ministerial Conference with China in Vientiane, Laos.

“If the Philippines introduces the US intermediate missile system, it will create regional tension and confrontation, triggering an arms race, which is totally not in line with the interests and aspirations of the Filipino people,” Wang said as quoted by Beijing’s news agency Xinhua.

The MRC, also known as the typhoon missile system, has been deployed in the country as part of Philippines-US military training, including the recently concluded Balikatan Exercise.

The missile system was also utilized as training equipment during the first phase of the Salaknib Exercise — an annual army-to-army combat drills between the Philippine Army and the US Army Pacific which will conclude in September.

The military forces insisted that the MRC, which has been deployed to the northern Philippines since April, was not fired during the exercises.

They also refused to give more details on how long the missile system would be in the Philippines.

Wang noted that both countries’ relationship was currently facing challenges because the Philippines has “repeatedly violated the consensus of both sides and its own commitments.”