Aquino leaves for Cambodia tonight to attend Asean summit

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino will be leaving tonight for Cambodia to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit where he is expected to raise the issue on the West Philippine Sea and the planned launching of a satellite atop a ballistic missile by North Korea.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte yesterday said that seven members of the Cabinet will be accompanying the President.

They are Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo, Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman, Transportation Secretary Manuel Roxas, Mindanao Development Authority chairperson Lualhati Antonino and presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda.

Despite protests from China, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) had reiterated that the Philippines would raise the need to resolve the conflicting claims over the West Philippine Sea through peaceful and multilateral means.

During the ASEAN summit in Bali, Indonesia last year, the Philippines pushed for the zone of peace, freedom, friendship and cooperation to segregate the non-disputed areas from disputed ones that could be jointly developed by claimant-countries.

Japan and the United States supported calls for a multilateral solution to the dispute but did not make any specific mention of the zone of peace proposal being pushed by the Philippines.

Despite being a known ally of China, Cambodia would not block discussions on the dispute, according to the DFA.