PALACE TOUR. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. (right) shows Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese around Malacañan Palace in Manila on Friday (Sept. 8, 2023). It is the first visit of an Australian Prime Minister to the Philippines since John Howard in 2003. (PNA photo by Rey Baniquet)
PH | Australia supports the “final and binding” 2016 SCS decision | MANILA – Australia has said it agrees with the “final and binding” 2016 decision on the South China Sea (SCS) that favours the Philippines and invalidates China’s broad claims over the hotly contested waters.
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met at Malacaan Palace in Manila on Friday. During the meeting, President Marcos Jr. said that his country would back the peace process.
“Security is a shared duty, and that includes supporting the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). That’s a big deal. And Australia does back the 2016 South China Sea arbitral award, which I said at the East Asia Summit. Albanese told Marcos, “That is final and can’t be changed.”
Albanese said that Australia and the Philippines have “common views” on important security problems, like how important it is to follow international law.
Albanese said that Australia would keep being “very consistent” in its support for the Philippines, especially on the SCS problem, because it was important to have a “stable and prosperous” region.
Marcos thanked Australia for its position that maritime claims in the territory of the Philippines “are not valid, have not been recognised, and are not in line with international law.”
“It’s great to have friends and partners like you, especially when it comes to that subject. It makes us want to keep going in that direction.” “So for that, we thank you,” he told Albanese.
The Philippines is part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which has claims that cross in the South China Sea (SCS). China claims 80 percent of the SCS.
Manila won its arbitration case against Beijing at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague on July 12, 2016.
China, on the other hand, continues to disagree with the PCA decision and has even just released a new plan with 10 dashed lines.
In his speech at the 43rd ASEAN Summit Retreat on Tuesday in Jakarta, Indonesia, Marcos urged his fellow Southeast Asian leaders to “never allow the international order to be subjected to the forces of might applied for a hegemonic ambition.”
Marcos made the call because he said that the Philippines still wants the SCS issue to be settled peacefully and wants ASEAN members not to be swayed by “any single power.”
During the 18th East Asia Summit on Thursday, Marcos asked ASEAN member states to work together through the regional bloc’s “centrality and universal multilateralism” to stop “unilateral and assertive activities” in the SCS.
“Great pals”
Albanese said that Australia and the Philippines are “great friends” and was hopeful that his visit would bring the relationship between the two countries “to an even higher level.”
Albanese thought that the new partnership would make the relationship between the two countries stronger.
He said that he is looking forward to more business and trade between the two countries.
Marcos said that the close relationship between Australia and the Philippines is “extremely important.” He said this because exchanges between people have helped Filipinos who live and work in Canberra.
“Once again, Filipinos who live in Australia and chose to go there, live there, and work there are very happy with how well they have been integrated into Australian culture. “We are very thankful for that,” he said. (via PNA)
