The Armed Forces of the Philippines is leaving it up to the Department of Foreign Affairs to handle the recent Panatag shoal incident where Chinese Coast Guards reportedly fired water canons at Filipino fishermen to drive them away from the disputed shoal last January 27. According to AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Emmanuel Bautista, they are avoiding a military confrontation between the two countries. He added that the government prefers to resort to international arbitration to resolve the issue.
