Duterte wants to discuss Chinese ships presence in Spratlys with Huang
President Rodrigo Duterte said he wants to discuss the issue of Chinese ships in the Spratlys with Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian before he meets Chinese Prime Minister Xi Jinping.
Duterte made the statement during the inauguration of the Binondo-Intramuros bridge last Tuesday where Huang was among the guests.
Duterte's online meeting with Xi is on April 8.
He added he wants to discuss fishing rights of Filipinos in the West Philippine Sea.
"We can talk about the Spratly Islands and probably the fishing rights of my countrymen ? plain talk, nothing else," Duterte said.
Duterte stressed the country has no "quarrel" with China despite the alleged incursions of Chinese sea vessels in the Exclusive Economic Zone.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) filed last week a diplomatic protest against China due to the close distance maneuvering incident of CCG ships in the Panatag Shoal.
Duterte thanked China for the construction of key infrastructure projects in the country such as the P3.39 billion Binondo-Intramuros Bridge.
Huang lauded China's strong cooperation with the government. Sixteen 16 government-to-government cooperation projects, including the Binondo-Intramuros Bridge, have been completed since 2016.
He said he hopes the Philippine-China diplomatic relations will "deepen" amid the "turbulent" international situation.
"This world is a inserpable community. We should further cherish regional peace and stability and value the hard-earned momentum of our relations. China and the Philippines are good neighbors and close friends," Xilian said. DMS
