Palace hopes Xi will attend Manila summit

Malacañang is hoping Chinese President Xi Jinping will personally attend this month’s ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings in Manila so Philippine officials will have an opportunity to discuss regional concerns with him, particularly the tensions in the West Philippine Sea.

“It would be better if China’s leadership personally attends because this would provide a better opportunity to discuss any disagreements and find ways to resolve them. That is the purpose of a summit, to address and discuss issues affecting the region,” Communications Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a briefing Tuesday.

She clarified, however, that Xi’s attendance has not been confirmed by the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Her remarks came days after Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang criticized the Philippines for supposedly abusing its authority as ASEAN chair by blocking Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun’s attendance at the 13th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) in Cebu.

Zhang said the move violated ASEAN’s principle of consensus through consultation and the ADMM-Plus’s open and inclusive spirit.

Castro disputed this, saying China was represented at the meeting by its defense attaché to the Philippines, Senior Capt. Yang Lei.

“We know that China was able to participate through its senior representative, Senior Capt. Yang Lei, the Chinese defense attaché to the Philippines. China was therefore given the opportunity to make comments and convey its message during the defense meeting,” she said.

Castro added that the Philippines had no plans to issue a formal statement in response to Beijing’s allegations.

“Everyone has the right to express their feelings and opinions. But as far as the Philippines is concerned, that is not the sentiment of the country. The President has consistently reminded us that engagement with any country must be pursued through diplomatic means,” she said.

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. rejected China’s accusation, saying Manila’s actions during the ADMM-Plus meeting could hardly be described as obstructionist given Beijing’s activities in the West Philippine Sea.

“To call my acts in any way obstructionist, I mean, what are they doing in Bajo de Masinloc and Mischief Reef? That is not only obstructionist, but that is already usurping (territory),” Teodoro said in a television interview Tuesday.

He also questioned China’s position on the ASEAN meeting’s stated commitment to international law, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and the peaceful settlement of disputes.

Teodoro said Beijing’s statements did not match its actions, particularly its refusal to recognize the 2016 arbitral ruling on the South China Sea despite claiming to recognize UNCLOS.

“They say they recognize UNCLOS, but they don’t recognize the arbitral award. There is an inconsistency there because the arbitral award was issued pursuant to UNCLOS. They initially participated in the proceedings, then withdrew,” he said.

Teodoro also rejected Zhang’s claim that he had acted unprofessionally and out of a personal interest, saying the successful conduct of the meetings reflected the collective efforts of the Philippine government, security agencies, and host communities.

“If it was about me, then there would be no unanimity except for China,” he said, citing the positive feedback from ASEAN member states and other participating countries, including Russia.

He said the Department of National Defense, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police, and Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, along with local officials and residents of Cebu and Lapu-Lapu City, worked hard to ensure the meetings’ success.

“If China has concerns, it should address them to the ASEAN member states and the Plus countries, which were very happy with the conduct of the ADMM. So there is an outlier here,” Teodoro said.

The ASEAN Plus Three is a regional cooperation framework involving the 11 ASEAN member states, with China, Japan and South Korea.