Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged the Philippines to dialogue about difficult relations in the South China Sea, where incidents between Chinese and Filipino vessels have escalated.
The South China Sea is a key trade route where the claims of the two nations overlap. Incidents involving fishing vessels, coastguard vessels, and other types of vessels have sparked intense criticism and animosity between Beijing and Manila.
The Chinese foreign ministry said Wang warned the Philippines’ foreign affairs secretary Enrique Manalo over the phone on Wednesday that China would defend its rights in the disputed waters if the Southeast Asian country misjudges or collaborates with “ill-intentioned” outside forces.
According to Wang, “China and the Philippines are at a crossroads in their relations.” Managing and controlling the current maritime situation appropriately, he continued, is the highest priority.
Manalo stated that he and Wang had an open and honest conversation on Thursday.
“We both noted the importance of dialogue in addressing these issues,” Manalo remarked.
Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam are also in dispute with China over the majority of the waters comprising the so-called Nine Dash Line.
In 2016, an international tribunal ruled against China’s 90% South China Sea claim, but Beijing refused to acknowledge the decision. In recent years, China has constructed artificial islands in the contested region and installed airstrips on multiple of them.