Deal on handling disputes forged by Marcos, Bolkiah
PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. and Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah have agreed to maintain open communications and endorse a peaceful resolution to any conflict between the Philippines and Brunei Darussalam and in the Indo-Pacific region amid threats to the international rules-based order.
The Philippines and Brunei are among countries with overlapping claims in the South China Sea (SCS). The other claimants are Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan, and China which claims almost the entire sea.
China has issued new rules effective June 15 that would enforce a 2021 coast guard law and allow detention of foreigners suspected of trespassing.
China routinely accuses vessels of trespassing in areas of the South China Sea that fall inside the exclusive economic zones of its neighbors and has clashed repeatedly with the Philippines in the past year.
The President, in an interview before leaving Brunei yesterday, said maritime cooperation between the Philippines and Brunei were among topics he and Bolkiah discussed during their meeting on Tuesday.
The maritime cooperation covers various areas including pollution, skills training, research and information sharing. It was one of three memorandums of understanding (MOUs) signed last Tuesday.
The two other MOUs are on tourism cooperation and on Mutual Recognition of Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) certificates. The Philippines and Brunei also signed a letter of intent to renew an MOU on food security and agricultural cooperation.
Marcos said he and Bolkiah also talked about strengthening the partnership between the two nations, trade, and streamlining processes involved in the Brunei Darussalam Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) region.
“The closest we came to any kind of defense agreement was really a diplomatic document that expresses the understanding that we both endorse a peaceful resolution to any conflicts between our two countries and in the region,” he said.
The President added that he and the Sultan had agreed that the Philippines and Brunei should have an open line of communication to avoid any misunderstanding.
“On the diplomatic agreement between Brunei and the Philippines as to the resolution of conflicts and a mechanism between, a bilateral mechanism for us to have that line of communication so that there is very little room for misunderstanding or a mistake or the kinds of things that can cause problems between countries,” he said.
ESCALATING TENSION
The President, meanwhile, said China’s policy allowing its coast guard to detain foreign trespassers in the South China Sea is an “escalation” of the situation and “very worrisome” for the country.
Marcos was asked to comment on the four-month fishing ban imposed by China, which he said is not new and was actually being implemented based on the season.
He said observing a fishing ban in the South China Sea is actually one of the things that “we have actually agreed upon before.”
He said the detention of supposed trespassers, however, is a different matter.
“The new policy of threatening to detain our own citizens, that is different. That is an escalation of the situation. So, yes, it is now very worrisome,” the President said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs earlier this week said it has filed a diplomatic protest over China’s unilateral imposition of the fishing moratorium in parts of the South China Sea, saying the move violates international laws and raises tension in the disputed waters.
It said the fishing ban covers areas within the Philippine maritime zones over which Manila exercises sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction.
Marcos expressed belief there is a middle ground with China to ensure peace and stability in the disputed area.
He reiterated that the Philippine government is exhausting all remedies to bring progress in resolving the issues in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) in the South China Sea, WPS including putting an end to China’s aggressive actions and to allow Filipinos to fish in the WPS.
He said the government is trying all mechanisms that will work for the Philippines including backchannel efforts.
“I’ve said it many times. You should try everything. You don’t know what effort is going to be successful. So, as any point of contact that I can establish I will use it. And at every level, at the leaders’ level, at the ministerial, sub-ministerial, private,” the President said.
“As long as it gives us, brings us progress in terms of resolving these. And you know, first of all, number one, to stop the aggressive actions such as water-cannoning and lasers and barrier putting etcetera. And secondly, allowing our fishermen to fish. Let’s start with that,” Marcos added.
SINGAPORE TRIP
The President is expected to talk about the legal and geopolitical position of the Philippines on the WPS on Friday before the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.
From Brunei, Marcos and his delegation arrived in Singapore at 4:52 p.m. yesterday. He will have private engagements and meetings today and address the 21st edition of the IISS Dialogue, which is expected to be attended by multiple stakeholders in defense, ranging from heads of governments, heads of states, and defense of ministers to industry players, from around 40 countries.
He will also meet with Singaporean President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Friday and as part of the series of high-level exchanges between the Philippines and Singapore as well as invite them to visit the Philippines. He will also meet with former Prime Minister Lee Hsein Loong.
The President, in an interview before leaving Brunei, said his speech before the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue is highly important while the invitation to the forum itself is already “highly significant.”
Marcos is the first Philippine president to deliver a keynote message for the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue.
“The fact that they asked the Philippine President to come and speak on that very subject is significant in the sense that it is a recognition that there are challenges that are facing the Philippines, specifically,” he said.
“Not only the Philippines, this affects the region and it affects the world. So, what I will present in the Shangri-la forum [the] day after tomorrow is going to essentially try to explain the position of the Philippines for both legally and geo-politically and diplomatically. And how we see the ways forward for the Philippines and for the region,” he added.
The President said the West Philippine Sea is important to international trade and the stakeholders involved are not limited to Southeast Asia, Asia, and even Indo-Pacific.
Marcos said it involves the global economy and the Philippines’ position is “important in the decision-making of many of the policymakers around the world.”
Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Medardo Macaraig, in an interview, said the President is expected to talk about the Philippines’ defense and foreign policies before the IISS as well as state again the country’s pitch for following rules-based international order.
LAWFARE
The Philippine Navy yesterday said is no indication that China is implementing a fishing ban in the WPS.
Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad, Navy spokesman for the WPS, said Filipino fishermen are still able to freely fish in the area despite the ban May 1 to September 16.
“The feedback from our fisherfolk is that they are allowed to fish so long as they do not enter Bajo de Masinloc,” Trinidad told a press briefing in Fort Bonifacio.
Bajo de Masinloc, also known as Scarborough Shoal and Panatag Shoal, is about 124 nautical miles from mainland Zambales.
China gained control of the shoal after a standoff with Philippine government vessels in 2012. Since then, the Chinese have prevented Filipino fishermen from going inside the shoal to fish.
As to why China was not implementing the ban, Trinidad said, “Today’s warfare is more narrative, it’s more of deception. It’s part of the lawfare of China.”
Trinidad, who earlier said the Navy does not recognize the ban, said the Navy has “sufficient contingency plans in place in the event that situations will escalate.”
Trinidad said China’s fishing ban is “illegal” and “against international law.”
“China is out of tune, out of step, out of their minds,” said Trinidad.
“Lawfare is one of the instruments in their cook book. The ultimate objective of China is sea control of the South China Sea. They will use the different instruments of a national power to assert that,” he said.
China has been has been announcing the annual fishing ban in the South China since its Coast Guard Law took effect in February 2021.
“The pronouncement started in 2021 when the law was passed and each year there is a pronouncement. I have not come across any report that it was implemented,” said Trinidad.
`DON’T BE AFRAID’
Trinidad urged Filipino fishermen to continue fishing in the WPS.
“Don’t be afraid, just continue (fishing). The AFP and the entire government is behind you,” he said.
Commodore Jay Tarriela, Philippine Coast Guard spokesman for the WPS, said China’s fishing ban is “illegal.”
He said China has no valid reason to enforce such regulation inside the 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone of the Philippines.
Citing accounts of Filipino fishermen, Tarriela also said China is not actually enforcing a fishing ban.
