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WORLD NEWS Tuesday 16 april 2024
The Philippine president says he won’t give U.S. access to more

local military bases

By AARON FAVILA Asked if he was concerned
Associated Press MANILA, that allowing the U.S. mili-
Philippines (AP) — The Phil- tary access to Philippine
ippine president said Mon- bases had provoked Chi-
day his administration has nese actions in the South
no plan to give the United China Sea, Marcos said
States access to more Phil- the presence of U.S. troops
ippine military bases and was in response to China’s
stressed that the American moves.
military’s presence in sev- “These are reactions to
eral camps and sites so far what has happened in the
was sparked by China’s South China Sea, to the ag-
aggressive actions in the gressive actions that we
disputed South China Sea. have had to deal with,” he
President Ferdinand Mar- said, mentioning Chinese
cos Jr., who took office in coast guard vessels using
2022, allowed American water cannons and lasers
forces and weapons ac- to deter Philippine ships
cess to four additional Phil- from the area Beijing claims
ippine military bases, bring- as its own.
ing to nine the number of He also mentioned colli-
sites where U.S. troops can sions, blocking of Filipino
rotate indefinitely under a fishermen and sea barriers
2014 agreement. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. answers questions during a forum of the Foreign Corre- to block ships from Scar-
The Biden administration spondents Association of the Philippines on Monday, April 15, 2024, in Manila, Philippines. borough Shoal, which lies
has been strengthening an Associated Press in the Philippine economic
arc of security alliances in zone. Under Marcos, the
the region to better coun- decision last year alarmed providing American forc- bases or give access to any Philippines has adopted a
ter China, a move that China because two of the es with staging grounds, more bases,” Marcos said, strategy of publicizing the
dovetails with Philippine ef- new sites were located just which could be used to un- without elaborating in re- incidents by allowing jour-
forts to shore up its external across from Taiwan and dermine its security. sponse to a question during nalists to board its patrol
defense, especially in the southern China. Beijing ac- “The Philippines has no a forum with Manila-based ships to witness China’s as-
South China Sea. Marcos’ cused the Philippines of plans to create any more foreign correspondents. sertive actions.q

Azerbaijan urges top U.N. court to toss out Armenian case alleging

racial discrimination

By MIKE CORDER Armenia since the end of a ing Azerbaijan, added that
Associated Press separatist war in 1994. Armenia “never gave nego-
THE HAGUE, Netherlands Armenia’s case is based on tiations a chance.”
(AP) — Lawyers for Azerbai- an international conven- He said that “with no ne-
jan on Monday urged the tion on stamping out racial gotiations and no genuine
top United Nations court to discrimination, which has a attempt at negotiations,
throw out a case filed by clause allowing disputes to that basically is the end of
Armenia linked to the long- be resolved by the world Armenia’s application” to
running dispute over the court if bilateral negotiations the court.
Nagorno-Karabakh region, fail to broker a settlement. Azerbaijan also argued that
arguing that judges do not However, Azerbaijani dep- most allegations in Arme-
have jurisdiction. uty Foreign Minister Elnur nia’s case fall outside the
Armenia filed the case at the Mammadov told judges scope of the discrimination
International Court of Justice Monday that Armenia could convention, meaning the
in 2021, accusing Azerbaijan not bring the dispute to the court did not have jurisdic-
of a “state-sponsored policy court in The Hague, arguing tion. Armenia is scheduled Presiding judge Joan Donoghue, center, opens preliminary
of Armenian hatred” that that the two countries had to respond Tuesday to Azer- hearings in a case at the International Court of Justice, or World
has led to “systemic discrimi- not first engaged in serious baijan’s arguments. Court, in The Hague, Netherlands, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023.
nation, mass killings, torture negotiations. Azerbaijan has also brought Associated Press
and other abuse.” “Armenia had its sights firmly a case against Armenia at Azerbaijan control over In December, the two sides
The legal dispute stems from set on commencing these the world court alleging parts of Nagorno-Karabakh agreed to begin nego-
long-standing tensions that proceedings before the breaches of the same con- as well as some adjacent tiations on a peace treaty.
erupted into a 2020 war over court and using the effect of vention. Objections filed by territories. However, many residents of
Nagorno-Karabakh that left these proceedings to wage Armenia to the Azerbaijani Azerbaijan waged a light- Armenia’s border regions
more than 6,600 people a public media campaign case will be heard later this ning military campaign in have resisted the demar-
dead. The region is within against Azerbaijan,” Mam- month. Nagorno-Karabakh last year cation effort, seeing it as
Azerbaijan, but had been madov said. The 2020 conflict ended with that resulted in the vast ma- Azerbaijan encroaching on
under the control of ethnic International law professor a Russia-brokered ceasefire jority of the region’s 120,000 areas they consider their
Armenian forces backed by Stefan Talmon, represent- agreement that granted residents fleeing. own.q