Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 7) — United States Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Teodoro Locsin Jr. discussed on Thursday the two nation’s “shared interests” in South China Sea, a day after Beijing called for resumption of talks on a Code of Conduct in the disputed area.
A statement released Friday by the US State Department said during their phone call, Locsin and Pompeo talked about the recent change in US policy on maritime claims in the South China Sea and opportunities for further US-Philippine maritime cooperation.
The US voiced support for the sovereign rights of Southeast Asian coastal states, like the Philippines, as China continues to claim almost all of the South China Sea as its territory.
The discussion between Locsin and Pompeo came a day after the Chinese government called for the resumption of talks on a Code of Conduct in the South China Sea. Amid Beijing’s allegations that US is “sabotaging” negotiations, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China should finalize agreement on what actions countries can take in disputed areas of the South China Sea.
The top US diplomat in July called China’s claims to offshore resources across most of the South China Sea as “unlawful” and criticized Beijing’s “campaign of bullying to control” other claimants. He said the US is aligning with the 2016 decision of an international tribunal in The Hague that rejected China’s maritime claims and recognized Manila’s sovereign rights in areas of the sea within its exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.
The United States does not claim any part of the disputed territory but conducts freedom of navigation operations in South China Sea, a strategic and major trade route.
Aside from China and the Philippines, the other South China Sea claimants are Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
President Rodrigo Duterte has pushed for an independent foreign policy and non-confrontational stance on the maritime dispute, in what critics see as a pivot to China. They have slammed his statement that he could not go to war against China, pointing out that the government could assert the country’s sovereign rights without resorting to arms.
Good call today with Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs @teddyboylocsin to discuss our shared interests in the South China Sea. The U.S.-Philippine Alliance is vital to a free and open Indo-Pacific. #FriendsPartnersAllies
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) August 6, 2020
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