Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo yesterday expressed optimism that the Supreme Court (SC) ruling throwing out the 2005 South China Sea joint oil exploration deal will not complicate relations with China. The SC voided on Tuesday the deal among state-owned oil companies of the Philippines, China and Vietnam to explore a 142,886-square kilometer area of the South China Sea. China expressed interest to resume oil and gas exploration talks with the Philippines in the South China Sea.

Lee-Brago, P., Romero, P., & Servallos, J. (2023, January 12). DFA: SCS oil deal ruling won't complicate China ties. The Philippine Star, p. 2.