Philippines rejects conditional offer of talks from China on South China Sea dispute
Manila’s envoy says Beijing wanted any dialogue to ignore the international tribunal ruling that dismissed its claims in the disputed waters
Manila has rejected Beijing’s demand that it “disregards” an international tribunal’s ruling over the South China Sea before the two sides can begin talks, the Philippines’ top diplomat said.
Although the two nations faced obstacles in resolving the dispute, they could take smaller steps, for example discussing fishing rights, experts said.
Philippine Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay said he met Wang Yi, his Chinese counterpart, on the sidelines of a Asia-Europe summit in Mongolia last week.
Wang asked Manila to disregard the ruling handed down by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague and begin talks, according to Yasay.
“This is something I told him was not consistent with our constitution and our national interest,” he said in an interview with a Philippine TV station.
In a statement, the Chinese foreign ministry did not mention any preconditions for negotiations. “Promoting a return to dialogue ... is in the fundamental interests of the two countries and their people,” the statement said.