By: Christine O. Avendaño - 07:26 AM
November 21, 2018
China and the Philippines on Tuesday
agreed to cooperate for the development of energy sources in the South China
Sea as visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed that Beijing would work with
Manila to “manage contentious issues” in the heavily disputed waterway.
“China and the Philippines have a
lot of common interests in the [South China Sea]. We will continue to manage
contentious issues, promote maritime cooperation through friendly
consultation,” Xi said on Tuesday night, reading from a statement during his
meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte in Malacañang.
Xi also promised that China would
work with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) for the conclusion
of a code of conduct for all claimants in the South China Sea.
Code in three years
“[W]e will work alongside other
Asean countries toward the conclusion of the code of conduct based on consensus
within three years and contribute our share to peace and stability and to
welfare in this region,” he said.
The Philippines and China signed 29
agreements on Tuesday night, including a Memorandum of Understanding on
Cooperation on Oil and Gas Development.
Xi and President Duterte oversaw the
signing of the agreements after they emerged from a bilateral meeting.
The energy deal signed was not the
joint exploration agreement widely expected to be signed during Xi’s visit.
A source with knowledge of the oil
and gas agreement said the deal contained “basic principles” and did not
indicate the location in the South China Sea of the two countries’ cooperation.
In his statement, President Duterte
did not mention the oil and gas development agreement, but said he and Xi
discussed “mutual concerns on defense, security and maritime cooperation, law
enforcement, transnational crime and strengthening of partnership in combating
illegal drugs” during their meeting.
“I am pleased with the current
positive momentum of the Philippines-Chinese relations,” the President said,
adding there was now “deepening trust and confidence” between the two
countries.
He said they also discussed China’s
participation in his “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program as well as
the rehabilitation of Marawi City, which was destroyed in a battle for control
between government forces and Islamic militants last year.
Sovereign equality
“With mutual respect, sincerity and
adherence to the sovereign equality, I will continue to work closely with
President Xi to deepen the relationship between our countries so we may
together secure a peaceful and prosperous future for both our peoples and the
entire region,” the President said.
The agreements signed by the two
countries included cooperation in trade and investment, banking and finance,
infrastructure, agriculture, education and culture, and people-to-people
exchanges.
The Palace had not released copies
of the agreements as of press time.
Xi earlier received a red-carpet
welcome to Malacañang from President Duterte and his daughter, Davao City Mayor
Sara Duterte, as he began his state visit to the Philippines.
‘Historic occasion’
After military honors on the Palace
grounds, Xi and the President went in for their bilateral meeting.
In his welcome remarks, the
President described Xi’s visit as “a historic occasion,” as it was the first
state visit by a Chinese president to the Philippines in 13 years.
“Today is a landmark moment in our
shared history. We have turned a new page and we are ready to write a new
chapter of openness and cooperation,” the President said.
Xi thanked the President for the
warm welcome, saying he was “deeply moved” by the sight of schoolchildren and
other local people who lined the road as he made his way to the Palace.
“My visit will be a milestone in the
history of exchange between our two countries,” Xi said.
Manila’s relations with Beijing
stagnated over long-seething territorial rifts in the South China Sea until the
President won the presidency in mid-2016 and rebuilt ties with China while
often pillorying US security policies in a dramatic pivot.
The administration of President
Duterte’s predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, brought the dispute with China over
the strategic waterway to international arbitration and won, but China has
ignored the outcome.
Duterte rapprochement
President Duterte has refused to
immediately demand Chinese compliance with the arbitral ruling, which
invalidated China’s sweeping claim to the South China Sea, where Beijing has
transformed a string of disputed reefs into missile-protected island bases.
His rapprochement has fostered a new
era of warming relations with the Asian economic powerhouse, with which he has
sought trade and investment, infrastructure financing and weapons to fight
insurgents.
While Western governments have
sharply criticized the President’s brutal crackdown on illegal drugs, China has
not.
But China has also been slow to open
its purse to the Philippines.
The President was promised $24
billion in Chinese loans and investment pledges during his visit to Beijing in
2016.
Bureaucratic delay
But only a fraction, or $140
million, has been given so far.
Asked about it on Tuesday, the
President’s spokesperson, Salvador Panelo, said the “bureaucracy” of both
countries had to be considered, as both nations had stringent requirements for
infrastructure projects.
“So it takes time. Hopefully, we
will hurdle all these problems,” Panelo said. —With reports from Julie M.
Aurelio and AP
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