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Philippines’ victory in South China Sea case can’t be ignored by any country —Duterte


President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday told fellow Southeast Asian leaders that the Philippines’ legal victory against China over the South China Sea dispute could not be ignored by any country.

Duterte’s defense of the 2016 ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which invalidated China's massive claims, came nearly two months after he declared before the United Nations General Assembly that the decision was "beyond compromise and beyond the reach of passing governments to dilute, diminish or abandon.”

Beijing rejected the ruling even as the Philippines pledged to deepen its bilateral relations with China, especially on matters related to trade and investment.

“The 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea is an authoritative interpretation of the application of UNCLOS [United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea],” the President said at the plenary session of the virtual 37th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related Summits.

“It is now part of international law. And its significance cannot be diminished nor ignored by any country, however big and powerful.”

Duterte maintained that territorial disputes must be resolved peacefully and in accordance with UNCLOS.

“The Philippines is one with ASEAN in transforming the South China Sea into a sea of peace and prosperity for all. We are committed to the immediate conclusion of a substantive and effective Code of Conduct in the South China Sea,” he said.

“And if I may add, it has been a long time and it is a long wait.”

The Philippines is currently the dialogue coordinator between China and the ASEAN on negotiations for a code of conduct aimed at preventing disputes from escalating into an armed conflict.

Aside from the Philippines and China, the other claimants include Vietnam, Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia. Taiwan and China are not ASEAN members.

Duterte, meanwhile, challenged Southeast Asian countries to be the “masters of our region’s destiny and that we can work together to achieve shared aspirations and solve common problems.”

“Dictated by zero-sum logic, external powers will continue to maneuver to get us to choose camps. And this we must resist – consistently and firmly,” the President said in an apparent reference to the US-China rivalry for influence in the region.

“Peace and stability can only be ensured by an open and inclusive order, where ASEAN remains the fulcrum of regional security processes and mechanisms.” —LDF, GMA News

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