Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, had a phone call with Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique A. Manalo at the request of the Philippines on December 20. At a time when China-Philippine relations are at an impasse due to the South China Sea issue, this phone call has attracted great attention within the international community.
It is crucial to identify the root cause of the difficulties facing China-Philippines relations. During the conversation, the Chinese side explicitly pointed out that the root cause lies in the Philippines' change of policy and position, refusal to honor its commitment, and repeated provocations that undermine China's legitimate and lawful rights and interests.
China also emphasized that the bilateral relationship is now at a crossroads. The future of the relationship depends on what choice will be made and the Philippines must be very prudent about it.
The facts speak for themselves. Over the years, China-Philippines relations have generally remained positive. At the beginning of this year, the first foreign head of state received by China was Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos. At that time, the two sides reached many important consensuses, including the commitment to continue handling maritime issues through friendly consultations. However, these consensuses have not been effectively implemented. The main reason is that the Philippines has shifted its policy towards China, frequently created incidents, and escalated tensions over the South China Sea issue.
Take Ren'ai Jiao as an example. Ren'ai Jiao is part of China's Nansha Islands and is China’s territory. This is an international consensus and is in line with international law, including the United Nations Charter. In 1999, the Philippines illegally grounded a warship on Ren'ai Jiao, seriously violating China's territorial sovereignty. The Philippine side had solemnly promised to tow away the illegally grounded warship. China and the Philippines had also reached a consensus on properly addressing the problem, in order to jointly maintain maritime stability.
However, the Philippines has continuously sent official vessels and warships to intrude into the waters of Ren'ai Jiao this year and delivered construction materials to the illegally grounded warship in an attempt to achieve permanent occupation of Ren'ai Jiao. It is the Philippines that initiated provocations and collaborated with some Western countries to intervene in the South China Sea issue, but it portrayed itself as a "victim", attempting to mislead the international community into believing that China was bullying the weak.
Philippine leaders recently claimed that "China is posing a real challenge to its Asian neighbors," and the Philippines needs to strengthen alliance relations with other countries to respond. This gives the impression that the Philippines is unwilling to jointly solve differences with China and even intends to push China-Philippines relations in a more dangerous direction.
Why has the Philippine government changed its policy towards China and escalated the tensions in the South China Sea? Observers pointed out that, for one thing, there has always been a strong voice within the Philippines on the South China Sea issue, and Philippine leaders intentionally consolidate their support by displaying a tough stance. For another, as the US and the Philippines enhanced their cooperation in the security field, Philippine foreign policy clearly tilts toward the US. Some in the Philippines believe that the US-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty can serve as a "talisman" and intend to leverage the US to promote the so-called "Indo-Pacific strategy," actively stirring up the South China Sea issue, attracting more external forces to get involved, and adding pressure to China in this way.
It is evident that the Philippines is the one abandoning commitments and making provocations in the South China Sea. It is the Philippines that is attracting external forces and creating a tense situation. It is the Philippines that spreads false information to smear China and jeopardizes regional peace and cooperation.
Looking at China-Philippines relations, China has shown great restraint and patience over the years to properly resolve the South China Sea dispute with the Philippines. However, this does not mean that China will make any concessions on issues related to sovereignty. In the phone call, the Chinese side explicitly stated that if the Philippines misjudges the situation, continues to act recklessly, and even collaborates with ill-intentioned external forces to continue causing troubles, China will respond firmly and resolutely defend its rights in accordance with the law. This is a clear warning. It is hoped that the Philippines can understand and take it seriously, and be prudent in words and deeds.
In the phone call, the Philippines expressed the hope to strengthen dialogue with China, and leverage the communication mechanism to jointly seek solutions to maritime issues between the two countries. China will not close the door to dialogue and contact with the Philippines. China hopes that the Philippines will return to the right path, fulfill its commitment to resolving differences through dialogue and consultation, and work with China to find solutions. In the final analysis, the prospects for China-Philippines relations depend on what the Philippine side does.
