Marcos issues call to ASEAN in Jakarta summit
PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. yesterday urged the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to oppose the “dangerous use” of coast guard and maritime militia vessels in the South China Sea but again said the Philippines remains committed to a peaceful resolution of disputes in the area.
The President, speaking at the 18th East Asia Summit in Indonesia, did not name China which claims nearly the entire South China Sea which is being claimed in part by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.
Among those present in the event were Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, and United States Vice President Kamala Harris.
China has been harassing Philippine vessels in the West Philippine Sea in the South China Sea. The latest was last month when six vessels of the China Coast Guard and two Chinese maritime militia vessels subjected to repeated dangerous maneuvers and water cannoning two vessels of the Philippine Coast Guard and two indigenous boats near the Ayungin Shoal which is inside the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
“The Philippines fully supports adherence to international law and the rules-based order. We must oppose the dangerous use of coast guard and maritime militia vessels in the South China Sea. We are concerned over illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, and the militarization of reclaimed features in the South China Sea,” Marcos said.
“The Philippines remains resolute towards the peaceful resolution of disputes. We continue to support freedom of navigation and overflight, and the rules-based international order in the South China Sea,” he also said.
Marcos again called for “restraint” among claimants so as not to add to the tension arising from the maritime territorial dispute.
“We must not allow tensions in the South China Sea to further escalate. In this spirit and in accordance with the DOC (Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea), we continue to urge all parties to exercise self-restraint and refrain from unilateral and assertive activities that would increase tensions in the region, misunderstandings, and miscalculations in the South China Sea. We are concerned over consistent actions that are in violation of obligations under international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS, and under the DOC,” he said.
The President, in various summits on Wednesday, repeatedly talked about the need to follow international law and the rules-based order, self-restraint, and refraining from assertive activities.
He emphasized that the Philippines is not seeking conflict with any country but it is ready to meet any challenge to its sovereignty, sovereign rights, and maritime jurisdiction in the South China Sea, even while urging ASEAN not to allow the international order to be subjected to the “forces of might or hegemonic ambition” of some with regard to the South China Sea issue.
PEACEFUL RESOLUTION
ASEAN Chairman, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, at the start of the ASEAN Summit, said the regional bloc had reaffirmed its shared commitment to maintain and promote peace, security and stability in the region along with the “peaceful resolution of disputes, including full respect for legal and diplomatic processes, without resorting to the threat or use of force, in accordance with the universally recognized principles of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).”
During the 13th ASEAN-United Nations Summit yesterday, Marcos again reaffirmed the Philippines’ commitment to a rules-based international order, while calling on the members of the international community to uphold the principles of international law to address the challenges to peace, stability, and security.
He said peace and security are the cornerstones of the ASEAN-UN Cooperation.
He also thanked ASEAN and its member-states for supporting the Philippines in its candidature for membership of the Security Council for 2027 to 2028.
“The Philippines would be honored to serve once again in this important capacity as we advocate the core interest and priorities of the ASEAN and our peoples before the United Nations through the Security Council,” he said.
MARITIME SAFETY
The President, during the ASEAN-India Summit yesterday and the ASEAN-Canada Summit on Wednesday, recognized the two countries’ support for peace and stability in the South China Sea, and for promoting the rule of law along with maritime safety and security.
Marcos recognized India’s support for ASEAN during the last Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Meeting when it stood with the regional bloc in its call to “factually update paragraphs on the South China Sea in the NAM Ministerial Outcome Document.”
He said ASEAN respects the constructive role of India in world affairs and its efforts to promote the rule of law as a major power in the region, and recognized the significance and influence of India in the ASEAN community.
Marcos thanked India for hosting the ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME) 2023 which, he said, is an example of how cooperation between ASEAN and a comprehensive strategic dialogue partner could promote an open, inclusive, balanced, transparent, and rules-based regional architecture.
Marcos, during the ASEAN-Canada summit on Wednesday, recognized Canada’s role in promoting maritime security and safety in the region under its Indo-Pacific Strategy.
He said among the initiatives under the Indo-Pacific Strategy are training on smart border patrols, addressing crime and terrorism, and military-to-military capacity building.
The President said ASEAN also welcomed the adoption of the Joint Leaders’ Statement on ASEAN-Canada Strategic Partnership, which is timely as Canada deepens its relations with ASEAN with the launch of its Indo-Pacific Strategy.
Marcos also recognized Canada’s continued support for education in ASEAN and its Feminist International Assistance Policy, including its support for the ASEAN Institute for Peace and Reconciliation (AIPR) through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives.
MARCOS-HARRIS MEET
On the sidelines of the different summits, the President and US Vice President Kamala Harris, during a pull-aside meeting on Wednesday, committed that the Philippines and the US will “work together and with ASEAN members to foster trade and promote regional peace and progress,” the Presidential Communications Office said.
In a readout released by Washington through the US Embassy in the Philippines, the US said the two leaders also discussed opportunities to deepen commercial and economic cooperation between the two nations, enhance economic resilience, “as well as their shared commitment to upholding the rules-based international order.”
“The Vice President reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad alliance commitment to the Philippines, and highlighted the role the US-Philippines alliance plays in ensuring a free, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific. The two leaders discussed the maritime security environment in the South China Sea, and reviewed opportunities to enhance bilateral maritime cooperation, including alongside like-minded partners,” it added.
They also talked about the recent identification of four additional sites under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which will “drive US investment to local communities across the Philippines and improve our shared ability to rapidly deliver humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.”
In a pull-aside meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Wednesday, Marcos assured China the Philippines will continue to push for cooperation with them and work towards more partnerships and collaboration even while the country asserts its rights in accordance with international law.
AUSTRALIA
The President thanked Australia for supporting the stance of the Philippines in the South China Sea issue and for its aid to ASEAN on education, defense, health, and digital transformation.
“We, the Philippines, thank Australia for expressing concern on the latest actions directed against the Philippines in the South China Sea. We join Australia on the call for peace, stability, and respect for the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention (UNCLOS),” Marcos said during the 3rd ASEAN-Australia Summit yesterday.
He also thanked Australia for supporting the Philippines’ hosting of the 12th ASEAN Maritime Forum and the 10th Expanded Maritime Forum held in Manila last December, and acknowledged Australia’s contribution to the Project-based Community Medical Deployment / Medical Aid Provision Initiative under the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting Plus Experts’ Working Group on Military Medicine.
The President also welcomed the adoption of the ASEAN-Australia Joint Leaders’ Statement on Strengthening Cooperation on Food Security in Times of Crises.
NUKE THREATS
The President highlighted the need to create conditions for diplomatic solutions to threats posed by the nuclear weapons in the conflict in Ukraine and the recent surge of ballistic missile tests by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).
Marcos yesterday expressed the concern of the Philippines over the “buildup of rising powers in global weapon stockpiles,” which he said poses undue dangers to global peace and security.
He again called on DPRK to fully comply with UN Security Council resolutions towards the realization of lasting peace and stability in a denuclearized Korean Peninsula.
“The Philippines firmly believes that it is now necessary to create conditions for a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Ukraine. We call on all countries to play a constructive role in contributing to this endeavor, particularly our partners,” he said.
UN Secretary General António Guterres pushed for the regional bloc as a “bridge-builder between the East and West,” and engaged ASEAN members in pushing for the five-point plan to address the conflict in Myanmar.
The five-point consensus on the Myanmar crisis calls for an immediate end to violence in the country, dialogue among all parties, the appointment of a special envoy, humanitarian assistance by ASEAN, and the special envoy’s visit to Myanmar to meet with all parties.
Guterres also called for immediate actions to address climate change by complying with the zero emission targets.
CLIMATE FUND
Marcos called on ASEAN to set up a “loss and damage fund” to kickstart efforts to combat climate change.
He said climate financing, complemented with viable and effective technology transfer and country-specific capacity-building, is needed to expedite a just transition to a climate-resilient economy.
“Countries with the smallest carbon footprints disproportionately bear the heaviest burden of climate change. We need to urgently realize the loss and damage fund to catalyze assistance to address climate change. We seek your support towards the development of our strategic minerals supply and value chains, which would boost our efforts in ensuring a resilient and sustainable future for our region,” he said.
The President has been in Indonesia since September 5 for the ASEAN Summit and related meetings.
He is expected to arrive in Manila past midnight on Friday, in time for the visit of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Marcos and Albanese are expected to discuss a wide range of issues, including regional security and economic development.
The visit of the Prime Minister is expected to boost defense and trade relations between the two countries.
At the House of Representatives, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro assured lawmakers there will be no backing down as China pushes its “expansionist” agenda in the West Philippine Sea, while reiterating his call for peace in the region.
“The principles that we’ll put is that we will not back down, we’ll continue to be doing what we are doing, and we will continue to build up alliances with like-minded nations in order to enforce international law,” he told the budget hearing at the House on the questioning of Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez.
The Department of National Defense is asking Congress for a P229.9 million budget in 2024 which is 12 percent bigger than its budget next year. The budget proposal includes P50 billion for the AFP modernization program.
Teodoro cited issuance by China’s Ministry of Natural Resources last month of a 10-dash line map which claims almost all of the South China Sea, as proof of its hegemonic ambitions.
“When China states that we are puppets of the United States or other hegemons in order to contain them, they implicitly admit by using the word ‘contain,’ that they have an expansionist agenda,” he said. “And that is proven by the new administrative map where they added another dash line. So that is the best evidence of their expansionist agenda, to dominate the whole South China Sea and perhaps beyond.”
Teodoro said the country should stand its ground while trying to gain leverage through alliances with like-minded countries and to have a “wise capability upgrade to have a credible deterrent posture to include the 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).”
While stressing that he does not want war with China, Teodoro said democracy will vanish if the country does not stand its ground while other countries are determined to conquer the West Philippine Sea.
He admitted that the Philippines needs China in terms of trade and investment because of its huge market but at the same time having an independent foreign policy.
Teodoro said there would not have been a problem if everyone only played fair and “they did not try to seize our territories.” — With Wendell Vigilia
