PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. said the country has started ironing out its recent “conflicts” with China during his meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang during the weekend.
“So today it was really useful that we were able to speak with Minister Qin Gang, the Foreign Minister of China, so we can talk directly to one another and iron things out,” Marcos said in a statement.
The meeting between Marcos and Qin was held in Malacañang last Saturday, a few days after Marcos said he wants clarification on Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian’s controversial remark about the safety of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Taiwan.
Huang was reported to have said that the safety of the OFWs in Taiwan may be compromised if the country will continue to grant forces of the United States (US) access to local military bases through the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).
The Chinese ambassador was among those who accompanied Qin at the Palace for the meeting.
“As to the conflicts, we agreed to establish more lines of communications so that any event that occurs in the West Philippine Sea that involves China and the Philippines can immediately be resolved,” Marcos said.
“So we are currently working on that and are awaiting the Chinese response and we are confident that these issues would be worked out that would be mutually beneficial for both our nations,” he added.
During his trip in Beijing last January, Marcos already announced the country is working on improving its communication lines with China to possible issues, particularly those stemming from territorial issues in the West Philippine Sea.
The President and Qin also discussed other areas for possible Philippines-China cooperation in business, culture and education.
“It’s very, very useful and very, very productive that Minister Qin came here and that we were able to talk things a little bit through, make plans for the future, continue to work on growing the relationship between the Philippines and China, not only in the economic field but in the cultural and educational and other exchanges,” he said.
Image credits: Presidential Communications Office via AP