President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Chinese Premier Li Qiang briefly confer after the former delivered his intervention during the ASEAN-China Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia on Wednesday, 6 September 2023. Photo from the PCO/Facebook.
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JAKARTA, Indonesia – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. told Chinese Premier Li Qiang that the Philippines will "continue to push for cooperation with China and work toward more partnerships and collaboration" after bringing up "coercive activities" in the South China Sea.
The two Asian leaders met on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China Summit earlier this week, where Marcos Jr. underscored the need for an international law-based code of conduct in the South China Sea.
During the ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, Marcos Jr. raised concerns about "hegemonic ambitions" in the South China Sea. He urged other Southeast Asian leaders to find "practical" ways to protect the bloc's interests in the strategic waterway.
"The President said that the Philippines will continue to push for cooperation with China and work towards more partnerships and collaboration," the statement from the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) read.
"He earlier said that he is pleased with the latest developments in the negotiations for a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea and that the Philippines will assert its rights in accordance with international law," it added.
During the 26th ASEAN-China Summit, Marcos said that the Philippines still believes that the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the rule of law should be used to settle maritime conflicts.
Before the ASEAN-China Summit, Marcos called out "misleading stories that frame the disputes in the SCS only through the lens of strategic competition between two powerful countries."
Marcos last talked to a high-level Chinese official at the ASEAN Summit with China. This happened a few days after Beijing's new 10-dash line and a few weeks after the water cannon incident in the West Philippine Sea, which made things worse between the Philippines and China.
In August, Marcos said that the Philippines sent a note verbale to Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian after the latest incident in Ayungin Shoal, where the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) allegedly used water cannons and harmful actions against Philippine vessels.
The CCG said it had taken "necessary controls" against Philippine boats that had "illegally" entered its waters.
Several countries, led by the U.S., Australia, Japan, and Canada, came out in support of Manila and criticized China's actions. This is the latest in a series of events this year where Philippine ships have been harassed by Chinese ships.
Li, on the other hand, said on Wednesday that Beijing's "good neighborly friendship" with ASEAN countries has grown.
"We have been committed to mutual assistance and our good neighborly friendship has become stronger… We seek common ground while setting aside differences, properly handle disagreements through dialogues and consultations and consistently deepen practical cooperation in the traditional and non-traditional security views," the Chinese official said at the ASEAN-China Summit
