President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday enjoined the other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to look for “innovative” ways to resolve the long-standing disputes in the resource-rich South China Sea. Duterte, in a speech delivered during the 36th annual Asean summit, maintained that tensions among South China Sea claimants should de-escalate. He said provocative acts could only trigger hostilities within the disputed waters. “We must not lose sight of strategic interest in (the South) China Sea. We must find innovative ways and exercise flexibility to achieve our common goal,” the President said in his intervention.

Duterte seeks innovative tack on sea dispute. (2020, June 27). Manila Standard, p. A2.