There will be no discussion of the sensitive South China Sea issue with the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) chief who is scheduled to arrive in Manila tomorrow. His Philippine counterpart emphasized this yesterday, citing the preeminence of “common interest” in such encounter as well as the need to improve maritime governance. “We’re not discussing that. No, because I’m sure we’ll not reach an agreement. What we’ll be discussing is common interest, maritime governance,” Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Commandant Admiral Joel Garcia told reporters.

Ramirez, R., & Punay, E. (2020, January 12). Chinese Coast Guard to visit Phl next week. The Philippine Star, p. 10.