China has advocated the “dual-track” approach – disputes should be resolved peacefully through negotiation between the parties directly concerned, and China and ASEAN countries should work together to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea.
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“Without kind of divulging super details of the discussion, I think that’s a general agreement between the two sides that we can increase those mutual port calls overall, to each other’s benefit”, Richardson told reporters July 26 at the Pentagon.
“We hope to see a process that will narrow the geographic scope of the maritime disputes, set standards for behaviour in contested areas, lead to mutually acceptable solutions, perhaps even a series of confidence-building steps”, he said.
“Conversation will continue to proceed”, he said.
The pair also discussed a U.N. Tribunal’s recent decision to reject China’s expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea.
Kerry, who was due to travel to the Philippines later on Tuesday, said he would encourage Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to engage in dialogue and negotiations with China when the two meet in Manila on Wednesday.
America’s top diplomat said the United States wanted China and the Philippines to engage in talks and “confidence-building measures”. Duterte appointed Ramos as special envoy to China following the July 12 award at The Hague. Short said that the United States has involved itself in the dispute to enforce its notion of freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, and believes that as the world’s only superpower, it is better equipped to counter China than ASEAN. It is disputing the sovereignty over a group of islets in the East China Sea, and closely watches China’s behavior in the South China Sea, where Beijing is pitted against Hanoi and Manila, among others. “The rights of the countries should always be respected”, Kerry said. “We likewise remain confident that through this military cooperation we would improve our joint humanitarian assistance and disaster relief efforts”, Andanar said in welcoming the decision.
However, the statement did not refer to the ruling of the United Nations -backed Permanent Court of Arbitration against Beijing’s claims in the sea. The ruling denied Beijing’s argument that it has sole possession of the waters.
He said the USA “would like to see a process of dialogue” between Beijing and Manila. Speaking with reporters at the Pentagon on Tuesday, Richardson said he “made it absolutely clear” to the Chinese that Washington will look after its “interests in the area and commitments to allies”.
China claims nearly all of the resource-rich South China Sea on historical grounds, overlapping with claims by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.
Numerous countries make claims to oil and gas reserves in the area, and millions of ordinary people still earn their livelihood from fishing in the South China Sea.
THIS WAY – US Secretary of State John Kerry (left) may appear to be showing the way, but it was actually President Duterte who welcomed him to Malacañang during a courtesy call yesterday.
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Ahead of the Asean Foreign Minister’s Meeting, during which many believed a joint-Asean statement on the South China Sea would be developed, Prime Minister Hun Sen announced that Cambodia would receive nearly $600 million in aid from China within a three-year timeframe to be used for the “development” of the Kingdom’s electoral process, health sector and clean water infrastructure.
