“Both sides agreed to continue maintaining communication through diplomatic channels, properly handle maritime differences, and get the situation at sea under control,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Tuesday regarding the recent bilateral meeting in Cebu, Philippines, where officials from the foreign ministries of China and the Philippines had “a candid and in-depth exchange of views” on maritime issues and other issues of mutual interest.
Lin made the remarks in response to whether an ASEAN-China senior officials’ meeting on implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea have helped to ease all tensions in the South China Sea.
The remarks came as the Philippines’ Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez reportedly underscored the need to “cool” temperatures with China, noting that Manila’s relationship with Beijing cannot be defined solely by maritime disputes, Reuters reported on Tuesday.
In an interview on the sidelines of the US-Philippines Society forum, Romualdez claimed that “We’re fine-tuning our relationship with China, and I think it’s important that we do that,” Romualdez cited potential areas of cooperation such as climate change, alternative energy, trade and manufacturing, stressing the need for a practical and pragmatic approach to international relations, Manila Standard reported on Tuesday.
