But he also emphasized that Philippine policy would not hew to the expectations of allies: “We have this pact with the west, but I want everybody to know that we will be charting a course of our own.it will be a line that is not meant to please anybody but the Filipino interest”, he said at a press event Tuesday. It is unlikely that the United States will abide by an ADIZ there, anyway, and Washington has already been working to help allies like the Philippines protect itself from a Chinese attack.
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In November 2013, Beijing set up an ADIZ in the East China Sea, causing an immediate backlash from Tokyo, Seoul and Washington.
One source was quoted as saying a move was dependent on whether the USA “keeps making provocative moves to challenge China’s sovereignty in the region”. We may have major differences, but we also share important interests, including maintaining regional peace and stability, supporting freedom of navigation and overflight in accordance with global law, and resolving disputes through peaceful negotiations and diplomatic dialogue.
Top US diplomat John Kerry will travel to Beijing for talks on a range of issues as part of a trip that will also take him to Mongolia and France, the State Department said Monday.
As the SCMP adds, in a written response to the South China Morning Post on the zone, the defense ministry said it was the right of a sovereign state to designate an ADIZ.
Manila: The Philippines will not distance itself from its long-time security ally, the United States, but neither will it be a lackey to any foreign power, incoming Foreign Minister Perfecto Yasay told Reuters on Wednesday.
In response, China has deployed fighter jets and ships to track and warn off the American ships, and accused the USA of provocative action.
The Philippines is seeking a clarification of United Nations maritime laws that could undermine China’s claims to 90% of the South China Sea. The report said the new ADIZ would be based on the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Woody Island and Chinas seven new artificial islands in Spratly chain, or 200 nautical miles stretches from the islands baseline.
“How China is willing to see the end of the issue depends on how well the other Asean countries involved in the claim work with each other in discussing the issue with China as the US could act as broker for the negotiation”. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims to the waters.
Their ties soured during the six-year term of outgoing President Benigno Aquino III, whose government sued China before a United Nations tribunal over its claims in the South China Sea, where Beijing is building low-lying ocean features and sandy blips into islands for military bases.
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Philippine President-elect Rodrigo Duterte said his country would adopt an independent foreign policy from his predecessor.
