(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte reiterated the Philippines was “not abandoning, not ignoring, not setting aside” the arbitral tribunal decision that favored it over China in the South China Sea dispute.
According to Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, the move was done by the President in a bilateral meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on the sidelines of the 32nd Association of Southeast Asian Summit in Singapore.
“He will deal with the arbitral tribunal in due time,” Roque said.
He said the President’s statement earned him praises from the Vietnamese official, who said that the “President handled China very well.”
He said the Vietnamese official also said they would “learn from (Duterte’s) handling of China.”
Vietnam, like the Philippines, has overlapping claims with China in the South China Sea.
In 2016, the United Nations Arbitral Tribunal ruled the Philippines has exclusive sovereign rights over the South China Sea and that China’s “nine-dash line” was invalid.
This was after former President Benigno Aquino III filed a case against China, disputing its claims over the South China Sea.
Unlike Aquino, President Duterte, however, has opted to take a more diplomatic stance in dealing with the Asian giant.