Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte asked China to dispatch sea patrols to help stop Islamic State militants from abducting sailors and attacking vessels, report local media.
Duterte reportedly said the intervention of Chinese coastguard vessels could help patrolling the waters in the Sulu Sea between the Philippines and Malaysia, which are infamous for the presence of the jihadist rebel group known as Abu Sayyaf.
AFP quoted the President as saying that he would like Beijing to dispatch a fleet like it did in 2009 when it sent a naval convoy to the Gulf of Aden to protect Chinese ships from Somali pirates.
He also asked China if they can patrol the international waters without necessarily intruding into the territorial waters of countries. Beijing could deploy its coast guard cutters, not its “gray ships” or naval assets, he added.
Abu Sayyaf, one of the fanatic Islamic groups seeking to set up a caliphate, began kidnapping sailors in waters between Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines last year, taking several dozen hostages and attacking cargo ships.
Kidnappings at sea skyrocketed to a ten-year high last year, the International Maritime Bureau reported earlier this month, with waters off the southern Philippines becoming increasingly dangerous.
