P-Noy scraps trip to China

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines has rejected a condition set by Beijing to withdraw the arbitration case against China if President Aquino wanted to attend the 10th ASEAN-China Expo (CAEXPO) in Nanning next week.

Because of the rejection, Beijing withdrew its invitation and sent word that Aquino should visit China at another time, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) announced yesterday.

“The President has decided not to proceed to CAEXPO, taking into consideration China’s request for the President to visit China at a more conducive time,” DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez said.

He added that the Philippines “will continue to abide by our principled position that bilateral relations can advance despite differences.”

China’s Foreign Ministry in Beijing did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Hernandez said that China had invited the Philippines to send a high-level delegation to visit Nanning a few months ago.

Aquino on Wednesday told reporters he would go, adding: “You may be surprised, I will travel next week. It’s quite a long trip to China. I will leave at 5 in the morning and will be back at 5 in the afternoon.”

“I don’t want to overstay our welcome there,” he said.

According to Hernandez, China informed the Philippines late Wednesday that Aquino should not proceed with the trip.

The Philippines is this year’s “country of honor” at the trade fair, which takes place in China every year to highlight trade exchanges between Beijing and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The Philippines and China have been embroiled in an increasingly antagonistic territorial dispute in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

Last year, China seized a shoal near the northwestern coast of the Philippines, and this year demanded that the Philippine navy withdraw from Second Thomas Shoal farther south.

The Philippines has further incensed China by seeking UN arbitration to solve the disputes.

Sources told The STAR yesterday that China asked the Philippines to withdraw its case in the UN arbitral tribunal challenging China’s excessive claims in the South China Sea before Aquino makes the visit.

Sources also said Chinese Ambassador Ma Keqing conveyed the message that Aquino was not welcome in China.

The Chinese embassy in Manila could not be reached for comment.

The Philippines reminded China on several occasions that the West Philippine Sea is not the sum total of the bilateral relations even as tensions over disputed islands escalated.

To peacefully and finally settle the disputes in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippines asked China to join Manila in validating the two countries’ territorial claims under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

China addressed a note verbale to the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) on Aug. 1, 2013 reiterating its rejection of the case filed by the Philippines and Beijing’s refusal to participate in the proceedings.  -AP