May 2, 2023
WASHINGTON D.C., United States — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Sunday (Monday Manila time) said he has taken up with China the recent near collision between Chinese and Philippine vessels off the Spratlys Islands.
A Chinese coast guard ship cut off a Philippine patrol vessel carrying journalists in the disputed South China Sea, causing a near-collision. The latest in a steady string of incidents between China and the Philippines in the contested waterway.
“I did. I have already,” Marcos told reporters on board the plane en route to Washington when asked if he would take up with China the recent incident between Chinese and Philippine vessels.
“I asked him — you know, that this is the kind of thing that we’re hoping to avoid, that this time it was a little more dangerous because they were so near. They nearly collided and that can cause casualties on both sides,” he added.
Marcos did not specify which Chinese official he discussed the issue with. It can be noted, however, that the near-collision incident happened a day after he hosted Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang in Manila to discuss how to defuse tensions in the South China Sea.
The president, however, said he reminded China of the creation of a direct communication channel between the foreign ministries of the Philippines and China to handle disputes in the West Philippine Sea.
He said the Philippines was waiting for China to give the details of the team that would directly communicate with their counterparts in Manila.
“I reminded them of the high-level communication we are building. We should finish it already. It’s still yet to be done. We’re just waiting for China to give details on their end. On our side, we already have our team,” he said, speaking in a mix of Filipino and English.
Fishing grounds
Marcos said he also took up with China the fishing rights of Filipino fishermen in the West Philippine Sea, saying that is the first priority for now.
He said China has agreed to “sit down” again on the issue.
“The overall priority is to safeguard our maritime territory but when you go into the details, the most immediate concern is the fishing rights. That’s what we have to decide and they have agreed again to sit down,” the president said.
He said he has asked the Philippine Coast Guard and the Department of Foreign Affairs to put together a map of Filipino fishermen’s fishing grounds to present to China.
“We’ll see what they say when we give them our proposal,” Marcos said.