Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, in an apparent policy shift, said on Wednesday he planned to ask China to make clear its intentions in the disputed South China Sea during Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Vietnam.
China claims almost the entire strategic waterway where $3 trillion worth of sea-borne goods passes every year, building and militarising artificial islands. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have conflicting claims.
“So, it’s about time, either in the bilateral or in the plenary, I should be bringing this important matter to the surface,” Mr. Duterte told reporters before leaving for Vietnam. He said China had to make clear its intentions in the South China Sea. “You want to control the passage or do we have the free passage?” he said, adding he would not be confrontational.
The two countries will also negotiate a military protocol to avoid maritime “miscalculations”, Manila’s Defence Minister said on Wednesday following a brief stand-off near a Philippine-occupied island in a disputed part of the South China Sea.
Delfin Lorenzana said the Philippines tried to put up makeshift structures on a sand bar about 4 km off Thitu island in the Spratly archipelago in August, but China objected and sent ships to the area. Mr. Duterte sought to defuse tensions by ordering troops to pull out. Construction was stopped. “We intend to sit down with China to draft and agree on a protocol to resolve immediately any incident,” he said.
Bilateral relations have often been frosty, but ties have warmed under Mr. Duterte, who prefers to not provoke Beijing and wants to tap it for investment.