SUMMARY
MANILA, Philippines – With a chuckle, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, chairperson of the newly-formed National Maritime Council, sought to shoot down talk of invoking the Philippines-US Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) over the Chinese coast guard’s harassment of a June 17 military resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
“This was probably a misunderstanding, or an accident. We are not yet ready to clarify this as an armed attack. I dunno, kung yung mga nakita namin… mga bolo, axe (laughs)… nothing beyond that,” said Bersamin, head of the government’s multi-agency body tasked set the policy and strategy for the country’s maritime areas.
It was the first time for the Office of the President to address the June 17 incident – and in a hastily called…