Marcos to meet with US VP, not Biden – envoy

MANILA, Philippines — The White House is seeking a meeting between President Marcos and United States Vice President Kamala Harris during this week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in San Francisco, California, according to the Philippines’ envoy to the US.

Marcos is leaving for the US today to attend the APEC Leaders’ Summit in San Francisco and to visit Los Angeles and Hawaii, where his family went into exile after the historic 1986 EDSA people power
 revolution.

Last week, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Marcos may have bilateral meetings with fellow leaders on the sidelines of the APEC meet, but there was no confirmed schedule yet.

“Due to the tight (US President Joe) Biden schedule … there is a (White House) request for VP Kamala Harris for a meeting with PBBM (President Bongbong Marcos) at the APEC summit,” Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez told The STAR yesterday.

“It’s still for the approval of the President,” Romualdez added.

Marcos will attend the APEC Summit as fresh tensions grip the West Philippine Sea, the part of South China Sea inside Manila’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, due to China’s aggressive acts, including preventing Filipino vessels from accessing the resource-rich area.

Last Friday, the Philippines accused the China Coast Guard (CCG) of using a water cannon to prevent a routine resupply mission to the BRP Sierra Madre, a rusty ship that serves as a Philippine Navy installation at the Ayungin Shoal.

The incident happened weeks after CCG and maritime militia vessels hit Philippine Coast Guard ship BRP Cabra and Unaiza, a boat contracted by the Philippine military to conduct a resupply mission also in Ayungin, on May 2.

China claims virtually the entire South China Sea, but it was voided by a Hague-based court in 2016.

Beijing does not recognize the court’s decision, downplaying it as “a mere piece of paper.”

Philippine security officials have assailed what they described as China’s “illegal” activities in the West Philippine Sea and have vowed to protect the country’s interests.

‘Ironclad’ commitment

Marcos and Harris met on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-US Summit in Jakarta last September and tackled various topics, including the alliance between the Philippines and the US and the South China Sea dispute.

During the meeting, Harris reiterated Washington’s “ironclad” alliance commitment to the Philippines and highlighted the role that their alliance plays in ensuring a free, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific, according to a recent White House statement.

Marcos and Harris also talked about the maritime security environment in the South China Sea and reviewed opportunities to strengthen bilateral maritime cooperation, including alongside like-minded partners.

The meeting was intended to build on the meetings of Biden and Harris with Marcos in Washington last May and the US vice president’s visit to the Philippines in November last year.

Marcos, Harris and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio also met during the ASEAN gala dinner in Jakarta and discussed the South China Sea issue and “unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force.”

Earlier this month, the Philippines and Japan agreed to begin the negotiation on a reciprocal access agreement or the status of visiting forces and to further strengthen the trilateral cooperation among Manila, Tokyo and Washington.

The West Philippine Sea dispute may also be discussed during Marcos’ engagement with US security officials at the Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii after the APEC Leaders’ Summit. — Delon Porcalla