He Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles affirmed this Wednesday that his country is studying patrol Philippine territorial waters in the South China Sea together with the Asian country, at a time of tensions over the territorial dispute between the Chinese regime and the Philippines over the sovereignty over several islands and atolls.
“As countries that are committed to the rules-based international order, it is natural for us to think of ways to cooperate on this matter.”, declared Marles at a press conference in Manila together with the Philippine Defense Minister, Carlos Galvez.
“We talked about the possibility of studying joint patrols and we hope that we will reach an agreement soon,” added Marles.
The announcement of the negotiations comes at a time of high tension between Beijing and Manila after the continuous raids by Chinese ships in the Spratly Archipelagowithin the exclusive economic waters of the Philippines – less than 200 miles from the Philippine west coast – , which China considers an indissoluble part of its territory for “historical reasons”.
Last week, the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr.summoned the Chinese ambassador in the country after the denunciation of the philippine coast guards of the use of a “military” blinding laser against one of their ships in the South China Sea.
The event, which occurred on February 6, occurred four days after the US, an ally of Australia in the region, and the Philippines signed a agreement that guarantees the North American country the access of its troops to four new military bases in Philippine “strategic” areaswhich China considered “aggravates tensions in Asia.”
In the framework of the aggravated territorial conflict between Beijing and Manila, The Philippine coast guard admitted last Monday “to be in advanced talks” with the US to jointly patrol the waters in dispute with China.which would further increase tension in the region.
China and the Philippines dispute the sovereignty of several islands and atolls in the south china seawhich Beijing claims almost in its entirety, disputing part of those territories also with Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan and Brunei.
While, USA and its allies in the region are seeking to counter Beijing’s moves in key waters for world trade and rich in natural resources, amid the struggle between the two countries to increase their influence in the Pacific.
Meanwhile, the Philippines ratified its adherence to the Regional Integral Economic Associationl (RCEP), the largest FTA in the world, sponsored by China and signed by 15 Asia-Pacific countrieswhich already covers more than 30% of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The Philippine Senate approved the inclusion of the country in the RCEP by a large majority, an agreement that includes China and of which not part of USAand which significantly reduces tariff barriers for around 90% of goods traded between member countries.
The Minister of Economy, Arsenio Balicasánthanked the Senate for ratifying “a bold, game-changing deal” in a tweet posted after the approval.
“Finally, the Philippine Senate has ratified the RCEP, another economic growth tool and including [a Filipinas] in emerging Asia,” added Balicasan.
The Philippines is the latest country from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to ratify the trade agreement.
The RCEP, which was agreed by the leaders of 15 countries in the Asia-Pacific region in November 2020, only entered into force on January 1, 2022 -after a decade of negotiations-, and includes almost a third of the world population.
China presents itself as the main signatory of this mega-treatywhich is seen as an initiative that was born with the objective of counteracting the Comprehensive and Progressive Treaty of Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), currently made up of 11 countries and which at that time was headed by the United States.
The approval of the vote (20 votes in favor, one against and one abstention) had the abstention of the senator imee marcosthe sister of the president of the Asian nation, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who has supported the inclusion of the Philippines in the agreement since he came to power.
(With information from Europa Press and EFE)
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Source-www.infobae.com