On March 4, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declared that the country will cooperate with China in areas that suit its interests, but will react when its sovereignty , sovereign rights and jurisdiction in the East Sea are ignored.
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| Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. speaks in Australia on March 4. (Source: Rapler) |
Reuters reported that President Marcos made the above statement in a speech at the Lowy Institute forum during his visit to Australia.
He stressed that the superpower rivalry between the US and China has a huge impact, damaging the legitimate maritime interests of other countries in the region.
“The rivalry distracts us from calling for the suppression of aggressive, unilateral, illegal and unjust actions that are contrary to international law and the principles of the United Nations Charter,” the Philippine leader said.
According to the Philippine President, the country's independent foreign policy requires Manila "to cooperate on issues that align with our interests, respectfully disagree on areas where our views differ, and respond when our core principles such as our sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction... are questioned or ignored."
On the same day, at the Maritime Cooperation Forum in Melbourne (Australia), Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo called on neighboring countries in the region to unite more strongly in maintaining the rule of law in the East Sea .
Referring to the Philippines' 2016 victory at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, which invalidated China's vast territorial claims in the South China Sea, Manalo said Manila pursued the case to uphold the rule of law and promote peaceful resolution of such disputes, AP reported.
“The shared stewardship of the region’s seas and oceans requires us to unite in upholding the primacy of international law, so that we can ensure just and sustainable outcomes for all,” he said.
The head of the Philippine foreign ministry called on neighboring countries in the region to unite and have collective responsibility and a sense of common management so that "the East Sea and the seas and oceans in the Indo-Pacific become unified fields of peace, stability and prosperity".
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