MELBOURNE
\nPhilippine foreign minister Enrique Manalo told AFP on Monday that his country wants to solve maritime disputes with China peacefully \u2014 but delivered a simple message to Beijing: \u201cstop harassing us.\u201d
\nSpeaking on the sidelines of an ASEAN-Australia summit in Melbourne, Manalo defended his government\u2019s policy of publicizing Chinese maneuvers in contested maritime territory \u2014 including the recent passage of warships near Scarborough Shoal.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s merely trying to inform the people of what\u2019s going on,\u201d Manalo said. \u201cAnd some countries or one country at least has some difficulty with that.\u201d
\n\u201cBut our simple explanation is if you would stop harassing us and, and perhaps performing other actions, there wouldn\u2019t be any news to report.\u201d
\nChina claims almost the entire South China Sea as its territory, brushing aside claims from a host of Southeast Asian nations.
\nScarborough Shoal \u2014 a triangular chain of reefs and rocks in the disputed South China Sea \u2014 has been a flashpoint between the countries since China seized it from the Philippines in 2012.
\nPhilippine governments have tried to rally international and regional support to their cause \u2014 with mixed results.
\n\u201cThe Philippines is committed to a peaceful resolution of disputes through diplomatic means, or peaceful means,\u201d Manalo said, while insisting \u201cthis will not be done at the expense of our national interest.\u201d
\n\u201cWe are reaching out to partners in like-minded countries with similar issues and similar concerns.\u201d
\nBut Manalo acknowledged there were was at least a small question mark over support from the Philippines\u2019 most important security partner \u2014 the United States.
\nThe two countries are treaty allies, meaning Washington has formally pledged to come to Manila\u2019s defense in the event of a military conflict.
\nAsk about the November election \u2014 which will pit incumbent Joe Biden against Republican firebrand Donal Trump, he said it was a topic of frequent debate behind closed doors.
\n\u201cEvery country in the world is probably thinking of that, of course. The United States is a major, it\u2019s a treaty ally of the Philippines. So obviously, any differences or changes in US policy from existing policies would most likely have some kind of effect.\u201d
\n\u201cAt this stage it\u2019s fairly difficult to assess how it would happen, or what would happen,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cBut all I can say is we are, of course, carefully monitoring the election season in the United States, but I\u2019ve had talks with many of my other colleagues from other countries, and I think everybody is doing the same.\u201d
\n\u201cSo certainly all eyes will be riveted on that election this year.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MELBOURNE Philippine foreign minister Enrique Manalo told AFP on Monday that his country wants to solve maritime disputes with China peacefully \u2014 but delivered a simple message to Beijing: \u201cstop harassing us.\u201d Speaking on the sidelines of an ASEAN-Australia summit in Melbourne, Manalo defended his government\u2019s policy of publicizing Chinese maneuvers in contested maritime territory […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":391422,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-391419","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n