MANILA, Philippines – Duda si Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. sa tunay na layunin ng Beijing sa negosasyon para sa Code of Conduct (COC) sa kabila ng tensyon sa South China Sea.
“Well, committed sila sa dialogue kaso sila lang ang naniniwala sa sinasabi nila, yan ang problema,” ani Teodoro sa isang panayam.
“Kung committed sila sa dialogue, ‘yung kapani-paniwala naman. Tapos nakalagay na naman, may colatilla na committed to dialogue based on historical facts ba ang nakalagay, e anong klaseng dialogue ‘yun? Monologue na naman na sila lang ang naniniwala. So committed din tayo sa dialogue basta alam nating di tayo niloloko,” dagdag pa.
Nitong Biyernes, sinabi ng China na patuloy nitong isusulong ang konsultasyon para sa Code of Conduct (COC) bilang tugon sa pahayag ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. sa ASEAN.
“China will continue to work with ASEAN countries to fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, actively advance the consultations of the code of conduct in the South China Sea, and jointly make the South China Sea a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation,” pahayag ni Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning.
Nitong Huwebes, sinabi ni Marcos na “there should be more urgency in the pace of the negotiations of the ASEAN-China Code of Conduct” and that “core elements of the COC, such as the milestone issues of geographic scope… and its legal nature to this day remain outstanding.”
Sa kabila nito, nanindigan si Mao na “the situation in the South China Sea is generally stable” kasama ang joint effort ng China at mga bansa sa ASEAN. RNT/JGC