Chinese President Xi Jinping leads the welcome reception for Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on Jan 4, 2023. - OFFICE OF THE PRESS SECRETARY
BEIJING/MANILA (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): China rolled out the red carpet for Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Wednesday (Jan 4) with the signing of an agreement to mitigate rising tensions in the South China Sea and pledges to boost trade, investment, tourism, agricultural and clean energy cooperation.
Chinese President Xi Jinping told Marcos during their talks at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing that China was “willing to continue friendly consultations to properly handle maritime problems”, according to Chinese state media.
An accord was inked to establish direct diplomatic communication to avoid miscalculation and miscommunication over the disputed territories in the South China Sea claimed by Manila as the West Philippine Sea.
Xi also declared that “there is great potential for cooperation”, and offered to restart negotiations on joint oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea and cooperate in photovoltaic, wind energy and new energy vehicle projects.
Marcos also raised with Xi the plight of Filipino fishermen, who have been unable to fish in their natural fishing grounds in the disputed South China Sea, the President’s Office said. Both leaders agreed to seek a compromise that would be “beneficial” to the Filipino fisherfolk.
The Chinese President noted that Marcos’ Jan 3-5 state visit is his first to China since assuming the presidency in June 2022 and his first to a non-Asean country, and that he is the first foreign leader hosted by China in 2023 – a testament to the closeness of bilateral relations.
Xi recalled that Chairman Mao Zedong and Marcos’ late father, who was the 10th president of the Philippines, jointly made the “historic” decision to establish diplomatic relations in June 1975 – one year after then First Lady Imelda Marcos’ landmark visit to China with Marcos Jr, then 17.
No matter how Philippine politics changed in the ensuing years, the Marcos family pushed for friendly China-Philippine relations, Xi said. “This friendship is precious,” he added.
After the talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing of more than 10 other pacts, including on cooperation in agriculture, fishery, infrastructure projects, finance, customs, electronic commerce and tourism.
It was the second meeting between the two presidents, who first met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Thailand in November.
Marcos and First Lady Louise Araneta-Marcos were greeted with a 21-gun salute when they arrived for a welcoming ceremony inside the Great Hall of the People, where the two presidents walked down a red carpet to review an honour guard.
A state banquet was held for the delegation in the evening, with former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Senator Imee Marcos, House Speaker Martin Romualdez and Cabinet members attending.
Marcos, who on Tuesday said he would be “opening a new chapter” in the Philippines’ comprehensive strategic cooperation with China, had also vowed to “work towards shifting the trajectory of our relations to a higher gear”.
On Wednesday, Marcos told China’s parliamentary chairman Li Zhanshu that while there were some disagreements between the two countries, these must not be allowed to be “the sum” of the bilateral relationship, the Philippines’ Office of the Press Secretary said.
Romualdez described the meeting with Li as “a very positive engagement” after the latter encouraged high-level exchanges between lawmakers of the two countries.
Marcos also met Premier Li Keqiang earlier in the day.
China’s Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian wrote in the People’s Daily that Beijing and Manila will “join hands to create a new golden era” for bilateral relations.
China and the United States have been embroiled in a diplomatic tug of war to win over the Philippines, which is China’s largest trading partner but has a defence treaty with its former colonial master, the US.
If conflict breaks out between China and the US over Taiwan, the Philippines could become collateral damage due to its proximity to the self-ruled island, which Beijing insists must return to the fold one day.
Marcos has struck a delicate balancing act between the world’s two biggest economies, opting to visit New York in September to address the United Nations General Assembly without calling it a state visit.
His immediate predecessor Rodrigo Duterte is perceived to have pivoted towards China during his six-year term, due in part to US criticism of extrajudicial killings and human rights abuses during his signature war on drugs.
He did not press China on The Hague’s 2016 arbitration ruling in Manila’s favour against Beijing’s claim over almost all of the South China Sea.
Duterte had threatened more than once to terminate the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement which allows US troops to rotate into the Philippines, but this never happened.
