GMA pushes joint South China Sea exploration

JIANGXI PROVINCE, China (Via PLDT) — President Arroyo stepped up calls yesterday for a joint exploration of the disputed South China Sea among claimant countries, as well as the promotion of more trade, investment and tourism between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The President urged China to take the lead in promoting good neighborly relations and cooperation by handling "sensitive issues with countries in a manner that is guided by the spirit of equality, respect, consultation and mutual benefit."

"We are hopeful that China will continue to pursue its foreign policy based on the maintenance of world peace and the promotion of common development," she said, citing China as the fastest growing economy in the world, aside from being the most populous.

Speaking before students of Nanchang University in Nanchang City here, Mrs. Arroyo said she would bring these issues up during the commemorative summit marking the 15th anniversary of the ASEAN-China Dialogue in Nanning on Oct. 30-31 and later at the ASEAN and East Asia summits in Cebu province this December.

"At the end of the meeting (in Nanning), we will probably issue a declaration of what our vision will be like," she said.

Mrs. Arroyo said it was important to forge a vision of what the future would be like for the next generation.

She stressed the importance of building for the young people a conflict-free and progressive region with intensified people-to-people interaction.

"Going forward, we shall continue to strengthen ASEAN-China partnership. How? For one thing, by promoting confidence-building measures. For example, there have been long-term conflicts between different countries claiming different overlapping parts of the South China Sea. But what we have done in ASEAN plus China, we have turned that area of possible conflict into an area of cooperation instead because China and the Philippines agreed that instead of fighting all the time over that sea, we just conduct joint seismic research in the South China Sea," she said.

At first, Mrs. Arroyo said Vietnam objected to being one of the claimants as well, but China and the Philippines were able to convince them to join the joint seismic research operations of their respective oil companies.

The Philippines has been calling for joint exploration of the South China Sea for possible oil and other resources.

There have been a lot of proposals to settle the conflict among claimant-countries, including a code of conduct and joint military exercises to stop piracy and illegal drug smuggling. — Aurea Calica