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China and Philippines to resume dialogue over South China Sea dispute Duterte: Philippines is separating from US and realigning with China
(about 5 hours later)
China and the Philippines have agreed to resume a dialogue on their dispute over the South China Sea, a senior Chinese diplomat has said after talks between the countries’ leaders. The Philippine president, Rodrigo Duterte, has announced his “separation” from the United States, saying it has “lost” and he has realigned with China as the two agreed to resolve their South China Sea dispute through talks.
The move appeared to be a diplomatic victory for Beijing several months after an international arbitration tribunal invalidated China’s expansive territorial claims over the resource-rich waters in a case put forward by the Philippines. Duterte made his comments in China, where he is visiting with at least 200 business people to pave the way for what he calls a new commercial alliance as relations with the US, a longstanding ally, deteriorate.
The Philippine president, Rodrigo Duterte, met his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in Beijing as part of a charm offensive aimed at seeking trade and support from the Asian giant by setting aside the thorny territorial dispute. His trade secretary, Ramon Lopez, said $13.5bn (£11bn) in deals would be signed.
Duterte hailed a warming of relations with China and said ties between them went back centuries. Duterte’s efforts to engage China, months after a tribunal ruling in The Hague over South China Sea disputes in favour of the Philippines, mark a reversal in foreign policy since the 71-year-old former mayor took office on 30 June.
“China has been a friend of the Philippines and the roots of our bonds are very deep and not easily severed,” he told Xi in his opening remarks. “Even as we arrive in Beijing, close to winter, this is a springtime of our relationship,” he added. “America has lost now,” Duterte told Chinese and Philippine business people at a forum in the Great Hall of the People, attended by the Chinese vice-premier, Zhang Gaoli.
Xi said the meeting had “milestone significance”. In a reference to the South China Sea tensions, Xi said that “although we have weathered storms, the basis of our friendship and our desire for cooperation has not changed”. “I’ve realigned myself in your ideological flow and maybe I will also go to Russia to talk to [president Vladimir] Putin and tell him that there are three of us against the world – China, Philippines and Russia. It’s the only way,” he added.
Following the talks, the Chinese vice foreign minister, Liu Zhenmin, told reporters that the leaders only touched on the topic briefly during their talks. “With that, in this venue, your honours, in this venue, I announce my separation from the United States,” Duterte said to applause. “I have separated from them. So I will be dependent on you for all time. But do not worry. We will also help as you help us.”
“Both sides agreed that the South China Sea issue is not the sum total of the bilateral relationship,” Liu said. China has pulled out all the stops to welcome Duterte, including a marching band complete with baton-twirling bandmaster at his official welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People, which most leaders do not get.
The two sides agreed to return to the approach used five years ago of seeking a settlement through bilateral dialogue, he said. The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, meeting Duterte earlier in the day, called the visit a “milestone” in ties. He told Duterte that China and the Philippines were brothers and they could “appropriately handle disputes”, though he did not mention the South China Sea in remarks made in front of reporters.
Philippine diplomats could not be immediately reached for comment. “I hope we can follow the wishes of the people and use this visit as an opportunity to push China–Philippines relations back on a friendly footing and fully improve things,” Xi said.
The talks had been suspended after China seized control of Scarborough Shoal, off the main Luzon island in the northern Philippines, and the Philippines launched the arbitration process under Duterte’s predecessor. The Philippines has in the past insisted that the ruling forms the basis for any negotiations with China, while Beijing has insisted on the opposite. Following their meeting, during which Duterte said relations with China had entered a new “springtime”, China’s vice-foreign minister, Liu Zhenmin, said the South China Sea issue was not the sum total of relations.
Duterte was greeted by Xi with full military honours at the Great Hall of the People, the seat of the ceremonial legislature in the heart of Beijing. The two leaders oversaw the signing of agreements between their governments. “The two sides agreed that they will do what they agreed five years ago, that is to pursue bilateral dialogue and consultation in seeking a proper settlement of the South China Sea issue,” Liu said.
China has framed Duterte’s visit as a step towards ending years of estrangement between the countries. China claims most of the energy-rich South China Sea, through which about $5tn in ship-borne trade passes every year. Its neighbours Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims. In 2012, China seized the disputed Scarborough Shoal and denied Philippine fishermen access to its fishing grounds.
Duterte has walked a tightrope in trying to mend damaged relations with China while defending his country’s claims in the disputed South China Sea. Liu said the shoal was not mentioned and he did not answer a question about whether Philippine fishermen would be allowed there. He said both countries had agreed on coastguard and fisheries co-operation, but did not give details.
In Beijing, the Philippine leader, known for his devil-may-care, profanity-laden speeches, said on Wednesday that he would not raise the issue unless his Chinese counterpart first brought it up, out of “courtesy” to his host. Duterte’s tone towards Beijing is in contrast to the language he has used against the US, after being infuriated by its criticism of his bloody war on drugs. He has called US president, Barack Obama, a “son of a whore” and told him to “go to hell” while alluding to severing ties with the old colonial power.
“As a matter of courtesy and in the Oriental way, you always wait,” Duterte said before a meeting with members of the Filipino business community in Beijing on Wednesday. “Because I am a visitor, I can’t destroy the goodwill by just blurting out something.” China has welcomed the Philippines’ approaches, even as Duterte has vowed not to surrender any sovereignty to Beijing, which views the South China Sea Hague ruling as null and void. China has also expressed support for his drug war, which has raised concern in western capitals about extrajudicial killing.
He also signalled a big shift away from reliance on the US, the Philippines’ long-standing defence treaty ally, telling the Filipino community members: “So it’s about time to say goodbye, my friend. Your stay in my country was for your own benefit.”