He also quoted ancient Chinese general Sun Tzu's The Art of War on April 14, saying the Philippines should "know when and how to fight". Rosario would do better to reflect on philosopher Mencius words: "A just cause enjoys abundant support, while an unjust cause finds little."
In fact, Manila has violated the agreements reached between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China on solving the disputes bilaterally and in peace. It constantly seeks to stir up waves in the South China Sea and has tried hard, though to little avail, to sow differences between ASEAN and China.
Many in China are beginning to lose patience as the face-off continues into its third week and some are calling for more resolute moves to punish Manila and defend the country's maritime territory.
On Thursday the Ministry of Defense said the Chinese military will work with fishery and maritime authorities to jointly safeguard the country's maritime territorial integrity.
Whether tensions over the stand-off at the Huangyan Island escalate further depends to a large extent on how Manila acts next.
If Manila continues to ignore this country's repeated offer of and appeal for peaceful dialogue, it should not count on eternal Chinese restraint.
As Sun Tzu pointed out nothing is more difficult than the art of maneuvering for an advantageous position, and in trying to do so in the South China Sea, the Philippines is only getting itself into hot water.
(China Daily 04/27/2012 page
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/Linkback:
https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=49704.0