PNoy, Chinese defense chief discuss South China Sea but ‘no specifics’

President Benigno Simeon Aquino III and Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie on Monday discussed the South China Sea issue — which includes the Spratlys — but did not go into specific incidents to avoid irritants. The Spratly Islands are a group of reefs and islands believed to be rich in oil & natural gas resources, and are the subject of territorial dispute among the Philippines, China, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam and Taiwan. Ramon Carandang, head of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office, said Aquino and Liang agreed to conduct more dialogues in order to come up with a peaceful resolution of the issue. “We would continue to dialogue more frequently if necessary in order to prevent issues from becoming irritants," he said. “Both sides agree that moving forward was the best way to resolve disputes not just between the Philippines and China but other countries [that] have claims on disputed territories in the South China Sea — this could be through further dialogues," he added. He said the two parties believe that dialogue is the best way that understanding can be cleared up and the different countries can reach an agreement. Peaceful resolutions “Both sides are committed to peaceful resolutions in the disputes in the region and we hope that we can see some accelerated dialogue on those issues moving forward. Both sides agreed to that and that’s something that we want to pursue," he added. Carandang described the meeting as “very fruitful," pointing out that: “In fact, the minister’s meeting with his counterpart, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, was meant to explore the ways in which the two countries can cooperate on security front." “We’re looking forward to closer relations to China in the coming months as a result of the dialogues that we’re having with them," he added. He said the President just reiterated during Liang’s courtesy call on him the Philippines’ position that conflict does not serve any country’s purpose and dialogue is still the best solution, something that the Chinese defense minister agreed with. “I think both sides are eager to not let the irritant that had come up over the last several months become a thorn in the bilateral relations between the two countries which are, of course, much broader than a simple issue in the South China Sea. The Chinese-Philippine relationship has many facets and we’re eager to develop and enhance all aspects of our relationship," Carandang said. He said the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea was brought up and the Chinese official expressed willingness to continue discussions on the matter. He further said that the two parties agreed not to take actions that would raise tensions, stressing that Aquino and Liang had talked “in broad strokes." “The Chinese Defense minister mentioned in passing certain issues in general and the President mentioned the South China Sea in particular. Beyond that, we did not discuss specifics as to Reed Bank or specific incidents or anything like that," he said. Reed bank incident At a press briefing last Thursday in his Dasmariñas residence, Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Liu Jianchao said Chinese boats patrolling the Reed bank “is neither a break of international laws and, even more absolutely, not a threat of force." He explained that a threat of force will be exerted by something that carries guns and uses guns. International law expert Prof. Merlin Magallona had earlier said China violated international laws amounting to “threat of force" when Chinese patrol vessels harassed a Philippine oil exploration vessel at the Reed Bank which is near the Spratlys but is actually part of Palawan province. The DFA had sent a note verbale to the Chinese embassy in Manila to complain about the Chinese vessel’s harassment of an oil exploration vessel in Philippine waters. But ambassador Liu said Beijing has responded to the note verbale claiming that China has “undisputable claim over Nansha islands [known as Spratly islands], the presence of Chinese vessels there are normal and regular operations" and “acknowledge[s] the positive response from the Philippines’ side on this." Spratlys dispute The Chinese ambassador said the disputes over the Spratlys can be addressed on the basis of the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Seas (UNCLOS), as well as through consultations and dialogue among claimant countries. The United States of America, through its Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, had offered to host an international forum on the Spratlys dispute. “Such words and actions are really meddling with the dispute between China and other claimants and this is not helpful to the understanding and cooperation and dialogue between China and other Claimant countries," Liu lamented. “We understand that this is an international concern because these areas should guarantee free and secure navigational routes," he said. — MRT/VS, GMA News