The Philippine foreign minister assured lawmakers in Manila on Monday that the code of conduct being agreed upon between Southeast Asian nations and Beijing will not lead to the West leaving the South China Sea.
A few days after China indirectly called on the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to resist U.S. involvement in the disputed South China Sea, Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Monday categorically rejected “China’s request” during congressional budget deliberations. “.
Locsin told Congress, “I can swear to you that the Western powers will continue to be present in the South China Sea. We believe in the balance of power, and the freedom of the Filipino people depends on the balance of power in the South China Sea.”
Loesing said, “China’s demand that the West be excluded from the South China Sea is something that I will never allow. The West must be present in the South China Sea as a balancer.”
The Chinese Embassy in the Philippines issued a statement last week urging Southeast Asian countries to resist U.S. influence in the process of developing a code of conduct in the South China Sea.
According to the statement, “a country outside the region is bent on interfering in disputes and COC (Code of Conduct) consultations in the South China Sea in order to serve its geopolitical agenda. Therefore, how to counteract this interference is critical to facilitate future COC consultations.”
ASEAN and China have reportedly been negotiating the COC for nearly two decades. In 2002, the two sides signed a Declaration of Conduct expressing their willingness to resolve maritime disputes peacefully.
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