Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte had said he did not want to anger China by highlighting the territorial row at the summit of regional leaders in Laos this week.
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The photos were released during an annual summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Laos, and the bloc voiced alarm.
(AP Photo/Bullit Marquez). Philippines’ President Rodrigo Duterte adjusts his headset at the start of the retreat session in the ongoing 28th and 29th ASEAN Summits at the National Convention Center, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016 in Vientiane, Laos.
However, in a statement later from China’s foreign ministry, Li was paraphrased as saying China was willing to work with Southeast Asian countries in “dispelling interference. and properly handling the South China Sea issue”.
Observers said the outcome would likely please China, and provide a setback to both the USA and Japan, which have repeatedly urged Beijing to respect the tribunal’s verdict.
The Asean summit, the first to be held in Vientiane for 12 years, takes place amid disarray over members’ opposing stances on China’s claim to virtually all of the South China Sea. It did not mention China by name.
But military skirmishes can not be ruled out if China does start to build an island, according to security analysts.
The Chinese premier also said Beijing always regards ASEAN as a priority for regional diplomacy, noting that this year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of China-ASEAN relations. China claims virtually the entire sea as its own, citing historical reasons.
Formed in 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, ASEAN now also includes Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Brunei.
The dispute has become more significant since the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled in July that no country had sovereign rights over activity at Scarborough Shoal. “The Philippines has underlined the rule of law and adheres to global bodies that govern this”, he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reach Laos capital Vientiane today afternoon to attend the 14th ASEAN-India Summit and the 11th East Asia Summit. In the past, China had sent one to three ships to the disputed shoal that was seized by China from the Philippines in a 2012 takeover.
But a few days before the meetings, the outspoken leader vowed to make no concessions towards China over the ruling, and demanded that Beijing explain why it had increased its boat presence around the disputed Scarborough Shoal.
The Philippines military this week released images of Chinese ships it said were capable of dredging sand around the Scarborough Shoal – a small but strategic reef and fertile fishing ground 130 miles (200 km) west from the Philippine island of Luzon. “We should be highly alert against the mischief-making intentions of people who spread such groundless information in such situations”.
A tribunal in July issued an “award” on the South China Sea arbitration, which was unilaterally initiated by the former government of the Philippines.
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Relations were severely strained under Duterte’s predecessor because of the conflict.
