The latest negotiations between the Philippines and China failed to reach an agreement, and immediately after, the Philippine media discovered that the Chinese coast guard had pulled two blockade lines near Ren'ai Jiao in the South China Sea.
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Chen Xiaodong (right) and Philippine Foreign Minister Lazaro (left)
Recently, the Philippine military spotted a number of Chinese vessels near Second Thomas Shoal. At the same time, Chinese coast guard vessels also appeared near Xianbin Reef. In response, the Philippine military said it was a two-line blockade line deployed by Chinese ships near Second Thomas Shoal.
Prior to that, the Philippines and China had just held the ninth meeting of the China-Philippines Bilateral Consultative Mechanism on the South China Sea issue in Manila.
The meeting, the first formal meeting between China and the Philippines since the June 17 ship collision, was described by the Associated Press as a "pivotal dialogue" to ease tensions.
Conflict between China and the Philippines at Ren'ai Jiao
At the meeting, China once again emphasized its sovereignty and jurisdiction over the Spratly Islands, including Ren'ai Jiao and its surrounding waters. At the same time, China also urges the Philippines to immediately cease all provocative acts, strictly abide by the provisions of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, resolve disputes through peaceful dialogue, ease tensions in the South China Sea, and put China-Philippines relations on a stable and positive development track as soon as possible.
At the same time, at the meeting, the Chinese representative also raised the root cause of the contradiction. Recently, the Philippines has illegally entered the waters near Ren'ai Jiao on the mainland many times to stir up trouble and cause trouble. On the South China Sea issue, China's position has always been consistent and firm, while the "capriciousness" of the Philippines is the crux of the escalating contradictions between China and the Philippines.
The Philippines often "turns its face and denies people" after reaching an agreement with China, and sometimes even after the Philippines takes the initiative to "sue for peace" with China. The Philippine side has backtracked and maliciously "broken the treaty" in such a capricious and malicious way, which has forced China to be strictly vigilant against the Philippines' actions in the South China Sea, so as not to stage a "wolf" story.
Before the start of the meeting, the Philippines also demanded that the Chinese side return the firearms confiscated by Filipino personnel in the latest dispute, and demanded that the Chinese side compensate for the losses caused by the dispute.
The ninth meeting of the China-Philippines Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on the South China Sea issue
In light of the various performances of the Philippines, China also stressed once again in the course of this exchange that it hopes that the Philippines will stop playing "clever" and that the contradictions between China and the Philippines can only be properly resolved through formal channels.
Although the Philippines has shown its willingness to sit down with China and have a good talk, we still do not know how sincere the Marcos administration is in resolving the South China Sea dispute.
On the evening of the meeting, the Philippine Ministry of Foreign Affairs also issued a statement saying that it had conducted open and positive exchanges with China on the South China Sea issue. The two sides agreed that it is necessary to rebuild trust between the two sides in order to have more effective friendly communication between the two sides in resolving maritime disputes. In addition, the Philippine side also reiterated that the consultations will be held on the premise of not prejudice to the other side's position as much as possible.
The statement also noted that during the meeting, the Philippines and China made some progress on measures on maritime disputes, but there are still significant differences between the two countries. However, the parties are willing to continue the dialogue until a mutually satisfactory solution is found.
The statement concluded by noting that the Philippines and China agree to hold consultations and dialogues on the premise of equality and mutual respect for national sovereignty, as this is conducive to peace and stability in the maritime areas. The two countries also pledged to continue to advance the issue of conflict in the South China Sea head-on at the 10th China-Philippines bilateral consultation on the South China Sea in China.
All the above signs show that although this meeting is unlikely to fundamentally resolve the contradictions and conflicts between China and the Philippines, it is not completely meaningless in terms of controlling the situation in the South China Sea.
For China, ensuring peace and stability in the South China Sea is undoubtedly the best way to safeguard its national interests. As for the Philippines, they will also worry that they cannot afford the consequences of completely provoking China.
Philippine supply ship camouflage
China's deployment after the meeting also confirmed the Philippines' "concerns". Although both China and the Philippines are very keen to ease the current contradictions, due to the complexity of the current situation, it is difficult for China to guarantee that the Philippines will not "do one thing in front of the other and do the same thing behind the back" this time.
It is worth mentioning that during the meeting, the United States, which did its best to "provoke" the Sino-Philippine conflict, also let the aircraft carrier leave the South China Sea. And when the Philippines has done all kinds of acts to "live up" to China in the past, it should think about everything it may face today.
We also warn the Philippines not to regard the consultation mechanism between China and the Philippines as a respite or a "means of de-escalation." The United States is now intervening in conflicts in many regions and is already "too busy to take care of itself", let alone taking advantage of the fire for the Philippines. We hope that the Philippines will cherish the opportunity of consultation with China and not follow the United States and act as a pawn to contain China. If the Philippines continues to stick to one path to blackness, then it will only become an "outcast" in the end.