Chinese President Xi Jinping urges new Philippine leader Ferdinand Marcos Jnr to stick to independent foreign policy
- The Chinese leader praised outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte, who has moved closer to Beijing, and said he hoped for ‘continuity and stability’
- The Marcos family has close ties to Beijing dating back to the time when the president-elect’s father sent his wife and son to meet Mao Zedong
Xi said China is willing to strengthen strategic communication and coordination with the Philippines on major international and regional issues.
According to a readout from the Chinese foreign ministry he told Marcos: “I hope the Philippines can continue to uphold its independence and autonomy in foreign policy.”
Xi spoke highly of the China-Philippine relationship over the last six years under the outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte, who tried to boost cooperation with China and put aside an international court ruling brought by Manila that rejected China’s claims to almost all the waters of the South China Sea.
Duterte’s administration was accused of human rights violations by the Philippines’ traditional allies such as the United States, while China, its biggest trading partner, promised massive investment and provided help to some of his most controversial policies such as war on drugs.