President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping have agreed to boost the “positive engagements” between Manila and Beijing in terms of trade, infrastructure, and Covid-19 response, while keeping peace in the disputed South China Sea. Duterte and Xi held a one-hour telephone conversation on Friday upon the initiative of the Chinese government, in which they discussed areas of cooperation to boost the trajectory of relations between the Philippines and China. “The leaders took stock of and reviewed Philippines and China ties over the last six years and described the trajectory of relations as one that is positive and created greater space for partnership and cooperation,” Malacañang said of the meeting.

Blancaflor, M. J. (2022, April 10). DU30, Xi boosting Phl-China ties. Daily Tribune, pp. A1, A2, A6.