‘Philippines not deviating from arbitral court ruling on SCS’

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines will not “deviate” from an international tribunal’s ruling that rejected China’s extensive claims in the South China Sea, but Manila must build trust with Beijing before discussing “sensitive” bilateral issues, Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. said yesterday.

At the same time, President Duterte said he was open to joint oil exploration with China in the disputed waters,  and would later “bring up” with Beijing the ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague.

Beijing had rejected the July ruling after the tribunal determined that China had breached the Philippines’ sovereign rights by endangering its ships and fishing and oil projects.

“I will bring this up someday,” Duterte said in a speech at Malacañang yesterday before government workers who received awards for outstanding performance. “What will I do with Scarborough Shoal, swim there every day? For what? Send my soldiers there to die?… If I send the Marines there, they will be wiped out.”

Presidential Communications Office Secretary Martin Andanar said earlier yesterday that Duterte has been “revitalizing” relations with China but was not “deviating from the four corners of the ruling.”

“The Philippine government reaffirms its respect for and strict adherence to this milestone ruling and will be guided by its parameters when tackling the issue of maritime claims in the South China Sea,” Andanar said.

The ruling, on a case brought by the previous Aquino administration, soured relations with China, but President Duterte, who took office on June 30, has sought to engage China, marking a reversal in the foreign policy of the old US ally.

Duterte has played down the arbitration, saying it would “take a backseat” during talks in China in October.

Last Saturday, he said he would “set aside” the ruling and would “not impose anything on China.”

But in a statement yesterday, Yasay explained that “revitalizing” ties with China was one of Duterte’s priorities and the government had been working to build “confidence and trust” with China.

“This we will continue to do for the foreseeable future, until such time that we achieve a trust level that will allow us to discuss the more sensitive issues in our bilateral relations,” Yasay said.

The government is also reaffirming “its respect for and firm adherence to this milestone ruling” and would be “guided by its parameters” when tackling the issue of maritime claims in the South China Sea and West Philippine Sea, he said.

“I also wish to reiterate what the President has stated in the past that he will not deviate from the four corners of the ruling,” the DFA chief said.

As state party to the United Nations Charter and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Philippines “will respect its rights and responsibilities under these treaties, including those rights recently reaffirmed by the July 12th ruling of the Arbitral Tribunal on maritime entitlements in the South China Sea,” he added.

Earlier yesterday, former foreign affairs chief Albert del Rosario said he was disturbed by Duterte’s declaration that he was setting aside the ruling of the PCA while unwinding military dealings with the US.

“The foregoing declarations are most sadly being made after we had taken a firm rules-based position to defend what is ours – and won,” Del Rosario said in a statement.

“Now, we seem to be on a track to relinquish those gains that have been made to benefit our people.”

Del Rosario was instrumental in challenging China’s so-called nine-dash line on its maps, setting out its extensive South China Sea claim and filing the case in The Hague.

Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims on the waterway where about $5 trillion worth of goods passes every year.