For the second time, President Rodrigo Duterte vowed to assert the country’s claim on the West Philippine Sea and the 2016 international arbitration ruling that upheld it, when he meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month.
Duterte indicated that his change of heart was prompted by the June 9 Recto Bank incident in which a Chinese vessel rammed a Filipino fishing boat and left the crew, later rescued by Vietnamese fishermen, in the high seas.
The president said he was particularly impatient with the progress of the regional Code of Conduct in the disputed waters.
He also said he wanted a 60-40 joint venture with Beijing to harness mineral resources in the area.
“So I’d talk about the arbitral ruling itself. Then the Code of Conduct and [the] marine resources. Let us first be sure that we have the access. And I’m most interested in the exploitation of the natural resources,” he told reporters following Palace oath-taking ceremonies for police officials.
Duterte first promised to invoke the 2016 arbitration ruling in favor of Manila on Tuesday, Aug. 6, during a speech in Malacañan Palace.
Asked on Thursday how he would respond if the Chinese leader repeated his earlier remarks that there would be trouble if the Philippines insisted on its maritime claims, Duterte said: “Then I will think about it. I will just keep it to myself first because at that stage nothing would really be a very significant development.”
“But once we have set the agenda, I talked first about jurisdiction, the CoC (Code of Conduct), and the exploitation of the natural resources of my country since as far as I’m concerned, we own it. So that is my position. We still own what we are claiming,” he added.
“It’s about time that we start talking. Panahon na. Ilang buwan na lang ako diyan (I have only a few months left),” Duterte said.
Reacting to the president’s vow to raise the Philippine claim to Beijing, opposition senator Risa Hontiveros appeared unimpressed.
She said in a statement: “This is something that President Rodrigo Duterte should have been doing consistently from the beginning. Nevertheless, I welcome Malacañang’s statement that the President will finally invoke The Hague ruling during his visit to China this month. Sa wakas! (Finally!)”
“I can only hope that President Duterte is not doing this merely to shore up support within the military, but because it is his duty as President to defend our country’s territorial integrity,” she added. (PressONE.ph)