PHNO-HL: SHIP REMOVED SAFELY BY CHINESE NAVY, SAILS HOME, MINOR DAMAGE

SHIP REMOVED SAFELY BY CHINESE NAVY, SAILS HOME,
MINOR DAMAGE

[PHOTO - China navy ship
'stranded' in disputed waters]
MANILA, JULY
18, 2012 (STANDARD) By Associated Press
-Chinese navy ships safely removed one of the country's warships Sunday from a
disputed shoal off the western Philippines, where it had run aground while on a
security patrol and sparked fears of another maritime standoff in the South
China Sea.
The warship will sail back to port with minor damage, and no crew member was
injured, Chinese Embassy spokesman Zhang Hua said in a statement.
The frigate got stuck Wednesday night on Half Moon Shoal, about 110
kilometers from the western Philippine province of Palawan, prompting China and
the Philippines to send rescue ships there. Both countries were already locked
in a tense dispute over another shoal off the northwestern Philippines.
The South China Sea is a flashpoint in diplomatic relations, with various
Asian nations claiming whole or part of its islands and waters.
Philippine Navy chief Vice Admiral Alexander Pama said at least six Chinese
navy ships and vessels, along with smaller utility boats, helped refloat the
stalled frigate. Filipino Coast Guard search-and-rescue vessels had been
deployed near the scene to help if needed, he said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said Saturday the Philippines was
investigating the circumstances that led to the accident, which happened well
within the country's territorial waters.
The Chinese frigate had apparently been sailing in Malaysian and Philippine
waters before the accident, according to a Philippine military official who
spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
Brig. Gen. Elmer Amon, deputy chief of the Philippine military's Western
Command, said Filipino vessels would continue to monitor the shoal amid the
continuing presence of Chinese navy ships in the area.
The shoal where the warship ran aground is called Hasa Hasa by the
Philippines and claimed by China as part of the Nansha island chain, known
internationally as the Spratlys. The Spratly islands are a major cluster of
potentially oil- and gas-rich islands and reefs long disputed by China, the
Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei.
Chinese and Philippine officials are still negotiating an end to a tense
maritime dispute over the Scarborough Shoal, about 700 kilometers away, which
has been going on for more than three months. The Philippines has withdrawn its
ships from Scarborough to ease tensions, but Chinese government surveillance
ships have remained in the area. AP


Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
All
rights reserved




PHILIPPINE
HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE [PHNO] WEBSITE


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/phnotweet

This is the PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE (PHNO) Mailing List.

To stop receiving our news items, please send a blank e-mail addressed to: phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Please visit our homepage at: http://www.newsflash.org/

(c) Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
-------------------------------------------------------------Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/phno/

<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional

<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/phno/join
(Yahoo! ID required)

<*> To change settings via email:
phno-digest@yahoogroups.com
phno-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/