Phl to keep lines of communication with China open

MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang maintained that diplomatic relations with China will continue despite the canceled meeting between President Aquino and Chinese President Hu Jintao at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Russia over the weekend.

“It doesn’t stop us from fostering relations with them,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said yesterday.

“As we have always stated, we have several levels of relations with China. So that should not be a hindrance to us – to both China and the Philippines. We continue to relate with China on several levels. And, as we have stated, Scarborough (Panatag Shoal) is not the sole or end-all and be-all of our diplomatic relations with China,” he explained. Lacierda said even if the meeting did not push through, “we are continuing with our diplomatic relations” and though both sides had issues that needed to be discussed, “it doesn’t stop us from fostering relations with them.”

He also clarified that Beijing did not snub Manila because it was they who sought the meeting.

“Remember, just to be clear, when (Foreign Affairs) Secretary (Albert) del Rosario visited (Ambassador) Sonia Brady, he had an opportunity to meet with his counterpart, the Chinese foreign minister. It was in that particular meeting when the Chinese foreign minister requested if President Hu Jintao can meet with President Aquino,” Lacierda said.

The Department of National Defense (DND) also reiterated its commitment to keep its communication lines with China open.

“We continue to observe open lines of communication as we earlier stated and take opportunity of any future event for interaction,” DND spokesman Peter Galvez said in a text message to The STAR.

“The important thing here – and which we should not lose sight of – is the President’s fruitful meeting at the APEC,” he added. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, Aquino and Hu could not find a common time for the meeting.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario said the bilateral meeting could have been a “good opportunity for the leaders to be able to exchange views freely.”

Aquino earlier said he was looking forward to a “frank exchange of thoughts” with his Chinese counterpart.

Singapore denies taking sides

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore denied reports that Singapore supported the Philippine position in its territorial dispute with China, when Prime Minster Lee Hsien Loong and President Aquino talked on the sidelines of the APEC summit last Saturday in Vladivostok.

“We have seen the reports in question. You all know how free the Filipino media is, they can even be very free with the facts. There has been no change to Singapore’s position,” an MFA spokesman said. “When PM Lee met President Aquino on Sept. 8, he reiterated Singapore’s consistent position, namely that we do not take sides on the merits or otherwise of the various specific disputes in the South China Sea. PM Lee called on all claimants to exercise restraint and for disputes to be resolved peacefully and in accordance with international law,” the spokesman explained.

“We had made this clear after the Sept. 8 meeting. Unlike the Filipino media reports you refer to, we deal with facts, not fiction,” the MFA spokesman stressed.

The statement was posted in its website http://www.mfa.gov.sg in response to the articles that came out in The STAR and the Manila Bulletin.

“Singapore has committed to continue its support in terms of a peaceful resolution of the disputes in accordance with international law including UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea),” Del Rosario said in The STAR report.

According to Del Rosario, the Singaporean leader also highlighted the need for members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – to which both countries belong – “to strengthen its solidarity and its centrality in being able to reinforce the importance of ASEAN being an entity that would promote peace and stability in the region.”