‘No bargaining’: Philippines’ Duterte says will raise South China Sea issue with Beijing, vows not to deviate from Hague ruling
Duterte says his trip to China this week represents a turning point in bilateral ties and will insist on sovereignty of disputed islets
Duterte said his trip to China this week represented a turning point in bilateral ties, but he acknowledged there was some public concern about his rapid rapprochement moves and reassured Filipinos that would not impact on the country’s maritime sovereignty.
I will not bargain anywhere, we will continue to insist that is ours. The international tribunal decision will be taken up
In comments that will not sit comfortably with the Chinese leadership, Duterte said the decision by the Permanent Court of Arbitration would be talked about and the parameters of the award would be discussed, but there would be no “hard imposition” of it.
The ruling dealt a blow to China’s extensive claims in the South China Sea. Beijing has refused to recognise the case and has chided any country telling it to abide by the ruling.
“I will not bargain anywhere, we will continue to insist that is ours,” he told a news conference in his home city of Davao. “The international tribunal decision will be taken up.”
The unpredictable president’s moves to strongly engage China, just a few months after an arbitral award that sparked fears in the region of a backlash by Beijing in the South China Sea, mark a striking reversal in Philippine foreign policy since he took office on June 30.
“There will be no hard impositions. We will talk, we will maybe paraphrase everything in the judgment and set the limits of our territories, the special economic zones,” he said of meeting. “It will be no bargaining. It is ours and many of you are wanting to ask the question. No bargaining.”