Philippines, China to sign agreements on infra, law enforcement
MANILA, Philippines — Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to sign a number of bilateral deals with Philippine officials in his visit to Manila this month.
In a statement released Saturday, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wang will have a bilateral meeting with Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. The Chinese official will arrive in Davao City on Sunday.
Aside from having a one-on-one dialogue with the Philippines’ top diplomat, Wang is also scheduled to meet with President Rodrigo Duterte’s economic managers to discuss infrastructure development.
“The two foreign ministers will also witness the signing of bilateral agreements covering infrastructure, law enforcement and humanitarian assistance,” the DFA said.
Duterte has vowed to upgrade the country’s dilapidated and aging infrastructure through his administration’s P8-9 trillion “Build, Build, Build” program. He has courted regional rivals China and Japan to help foot the bill for the construction boom.
But despite Duterte's warm relations with China, the Philippines has a long history of mistrust of it as the two countries continue to spar over the resource-rich South China Sea.
Of the 27 agreements inked between China and the Philippines in 2016, the Philippines has so far completed only one loan agreement with China — the P4.372 billion Chico River Pump Irrigation Project.
Manila is expected to seal at least 10 financing agreements with China during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s upcoming visit here in November. — Ian Nicolas Cigaral
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