Any deal on joint development in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) should respect the country’s sovereignty over these waters and recognize that they are part of Philippine territory, Sen. Grace Poe said on Friday. The reelectionist senator made the statement following a meeting between President Duterte and President Xi Jinping in Beijing where the Chinese leader cited a proposed oil and gas exploration deal in which the two sides “suspended their differences for a joint exploration that would mutually benefit both countries and their peoples.” In his meeting with Xi on Thursday, Duterte raised the West Philippine Sea dispute, the situation at Pag-asa (Thitu) Island, which had been swarmed by nearly 300 Chinese vessels mostly belonging to China’s maritime militia since January, and the harvesting of endangered giant clams at Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal.

Aurelio, J. M., Yap, D., & Dumlao-Abadilla, D. (2019, April 27). Transparency demanded in PH-China deals on WPS projects. Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. A6.