Gamiaw WorldNews: Philippines-China bilateral talks ok'd with US

CTO: DZRH Radio

The United States is respecting any move that presumptive President-elect Rodrigo Duterte may deem good to settle the dispute in the West Philippine Sea.

Duterte earlier revealed that he told US President Barack Obama that he is open to have bilateral talks with China if the multilateral talks that would include the Philippines’ giant allies as well as other claimant nations fail to prosper.

Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel said the US encourages and welcomes dialogue among claimant nations in disputed waters.

“So in that respect, the statement of the presumptive president-elect of the Philippines is consistent with the important prospect for diplomatic engagement and the peaceful resolution of differences among the countries in Southeast Asia through dialogue,” he said in a press briefing prior to Obama’s visit to Vietnam and Japan from May 21 to 28.

“But it in no way contradicts or undermines the legitimacy of any country availing themselves of appropriate legal mechanisms as well, a right that all 10 Asean countries have repeatedly reaffirmed,” Russel added.

Apart from the Philippines and China, Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims to the strategic waters, which is believed to have huge deposits of oil and gas, through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes annually.

Meanwhile, National Security Council Senior Director for Asian Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink said the Group of Seven (G7) advanced economies will likely discuss the issues in the West Philippine Sea at the Ise-Shima summit next week.

“I think it’s only natural that important security issues such as maritime security are an issue of interest to the leaders of the G7.  I know that the G7 foreign ministers, when they met, they discussed the issue and that was part of their statement.  And I would think it’s only natural that that would be discussed at the leader level as well, so I’m confident that it will be addressed in the context of the G7,” he said  in the same press briefing.

Kritenbrink disclosed that leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Japan and the US will also discuss a range of topics of mutual interest, including the global economy, climate, foreign policy issues, trade, terrorism, migration flows and the situation in Ukraine.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe has also designed an agenda that will include discussion of issues particular to Asia, including the efforts to address the North Korea threat and maritime security issues, the US official said.

According to an earlier statement from The White House, Obama’s travel to Vietnam and Japan will be his tenth trip to Asia.

This trip will highlight the President’s ongoing commitment to the US Rebalance to Asia and the Pacific, designed to increase US diplomatic, economic, and security engagement with the countries and peoples of the region.