MANILA – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said China’s proposals on resolving the disputes in the West Philippine Sea were rejected because they were “contrary to our national interests.”
In a statement on Tuesday, the DFA said they have submitted counter-proposals that were products of “extensive internal consultations,” but these were not considered by Beijing.
“The DFA had received last year a number of concept papers from China on various maritime-related proposals. In no way did the Philippine Government ignore China’s proposals,” the DFA said.
“The DFA had lengthy and in-depth consultations with the various concerned Philippine Government agencies which have primary competence, or functional mandate over the topics and issues in the said Chinese concept papers. Several rounds of internal discussions and deliberations were also undertaken within the DFA to consider the Chinese proposals,” it added.
The DFA made the statement after recent reports that the Philippine government has ignored China’s proposals on resolving the disputes in the contested waters.
The DFA, however, said that a “few” of China’s proposals were “somewhat workable,” but the other proposals were deemed as “contrary to our national interests.”
“Any agreement with any foreign government should be in accordance to the mutual interests of the country, but should also not undermine the Philippine Constitution nor diminish the Philippines’ rights under international law,” the DFA said.
Philippines and China have been on dispute over the resource-rich waters, with China claiming the entire South China Sea, including waters and features of the West Philippine Sea, which covers the Philippines’ EEZ.
In 2016, the Philippines was awarded the arbitral ruling that denied the nine-dash line, the basis of China’s historical claims over the islands and waters in the entire South China Sea, including EEZs of neighboring Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
China, however, rejected the ruling and maintained an aggressive stance in the region, even firing water cannons at Philippine vessels taking humanitarian supplies to a military outpost at the Ayungin Shoal./PN
