(Eagle News) — Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China have agreed to start talks on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea based on the Framework approved by the foreign ministers in August.
Foreign Affairs spokesperson Robespierre Bolivar said this was announced by both sides in their statements delivered during the ASEAN-China Summit on Monday.
The summit held at the Philippine International Convention Center was attended by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.
In a separate statement, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the aim was to come up with a “substantive and effective Code of Conduct.”
“(The Philippines) will issue a chairman’s statement for the ASEAN-China Summit to reflect this fact,” Bolivar said.
Apart from the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei, among others, have overlapping claims in the South China Sea.
During the administration of then-President Benigno Aquino III, the Philippines scored a victory over China before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands.
Aquino tried to force China to abide by the decision that would have settled their South China Sea dispute but to no avail.
When President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office, he adopted a softer stance in the dispute, opting to use a more diplomatic approach with China.