THE Philippines has voiced its concern to China over its activities in the South China Sea, the Palace said Tuesday.
“We have issued a note verbale to China regarding the buildup of weapon systems in manmade islands in the South China Sea,” Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella said in a statement.
A note verbale is a diplomatic communication prepared in the third person and unsigned. It is less formal than a note or letter of protest.
“Aggressive and provocative diplomacy will bring us nowhere so we dealt with the issue formally,” Abella said. “©”©
“The Philippines will continue to assert its sovereignty over disputed territory in the South China Sea while remaining consistent with the efforts of President [Rodrigo] Duterte to revitalize longstanding ties with China,” he added.
“As always, we shall staunchly support all efforts to maintain peace and stability in the region.”
On Tuesday, Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay said the government is not sleeping on its job to protect national interests in the disputed territories even as it tries to improve relations with China.
In a television interview, Yasay revealed that he had issued several note verbales to China over concerns in the disputed territories, including in Scarborough Shoal.
He said he has issued three to four note verbales since taking office in 2016, the latest of which was about last month’s report that China appeared to have installed anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems on artificial islands it built in the South China Sea.
Yasay said the note verbale was issued “as a matter of course,” adding that a protest “would not be appropriate under the circumstances.”
“When we got the report about this installation, we had our people, especially from the intelligence community, verify this. And when the verification came in, we as a matter of course sent a note verbale to China,” Yasay said.
Yasay did not say what China’s response was to the note verbales.
In the interview, Yasay said the administration is committed to ensuring the country’s claim on the disputed territory, even though the President has said he is willing to set aside a UN tribunal’s ruling favoring the Philippines to appease Beijing.
Yasay said the government’s manner of communicating with China was “the right tack” to take and would allow the two countries to “strengthen other aspects of the relationship.”
“You see, in Scarborough Shoal, our fishermen are having free access. Because of the goodwill that has been promoted by engagement in this manner, they [China] have not made any indication of trying to reclaim that area for the purpose of converting it into artificial islands,” he said.
He described this as a “breakthrough” and said the government would continue on its non-confrontational tack.
“When you want to renew ties with another country, it does not mean you are compromising or eroding your rights on certain matters …. Even as we are renewing these ties, when something happens that can pose as some threat to the sovereign rights, as a matter of course we issue this note verbale and make sure we can discuss and talk about it and resolve it,” he said.
Yasay said that they “have always made clear” that they would “move forward with the arbitral tribunal’s ruling” when it is time to engage China about the dispute.
He said the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s decision “laid the firm legal foundations of our claim.”
“This is what we’ve made clear to China. In the meantime that they’re not ready—because they have also insisted that they are not willing to talk to us unless it’s outside of the framework of the arbitral tribunal’s decision—we have in a manner of speaking set it aside, but made it clear to each other that we are not compromising or eroding the rights that we have asserted,” he said.
On Tuesday, China Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Liu Zhenmin was scheduled to meet Duterte and his counterparts from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Abella said Liu was in the Philippines for “political consultations” and said he would not discuss the South China Sea with Duterte.
“His request for an audience with the President is simply a courtesy call and exchange of pleasantries. It cannot involve discussions of substantive issues that will undermine the purpose and process of our political consultations,” Abella said.
Liu is the most high-profile Chinese visitor to the Philippines since Duterte came to power last year and launched surprise moves to repair and strengthen ties with Beijing.
The visit comes just a few days after that of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, as China and Japan vie for influence and opportunities in the Philippines as it earmarks record budgets for a major overhaul of its dilapidated infrastructure.
Duterte has turned Philippine foreign policy upside down, showing disdain for traditional ally the United States and openness towards China, setting aside years of mistrust from a long-running dispute about the South China Sea.
Duterte has frequently praised Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and put issues of maritime sovereignty on the back burner to foster better business ties with Beijing.