The government will study the proposed revival of the joint oil exploration between the Philippines and China in the resource-rich West Philippine Sea (WPS), Malacañang said on Tuesday.
Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles issued the statement after former Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Liu Jianchao expressed optimism about the revival of negotiations on China’s possible joint oil and gas exploration with the Philippines in WPS.
Liu, the current minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China’s (CPC) Central Committee, said Sunday he hoped the Marcos administration will consider joint oil and gas development in the busy waterway.
Cruz-Angeles said the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) will look into the proposal.
“With regard to our foreign relations, especially if these involve contracts, the Department of Foreign Affairs needs to be notified,” she said.
Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian on July 27 said China is ready to restart talks on oil and gas exploration with the Philippines.
In November 2018, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on joint oil and gas development in WPS.
Under the Duterte administration, the Philippines terminated the talks before Marcos assumed the presidency on June 30 because of constitutional constraints and issues on the country’s sovereignty.
The Philippines on July 12, 2016, won its petition against China before the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague, Netherlands after the court invalidated Beijing’s supposedly historic rights over nearly the entire South China Sea, including the WPS.
China has refused to recognize the 2016 PCA ruling.
Liu earlier met with Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo, House Speaker and Lakas-CMD president Martin Romualdez, and Senate Minority Leader and PDP-Laban chairman Aquilino Pimentel III.
Liu also expressed hope the Philippines will proceed with China-funded railway projects so that Filipinos “will have access to the convenience of railway transportation as soon as possible.”
“I hope that the two sides will have a serious, pragmatic, and reasonable discussions and consultations on these projects so once agreed upon, once consensus is reached, the projects will be carried forward,” China’s former ambassador to the Philippines said.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. earlier ordered the Department of Transportation to renegotiate the loan agreements for three railway projects, namely the Philippine National Railways Bicol project,Subic-Clark Railway Project, and the first phase of the Mindanao Railway Project.
The DOTr said the Chinese bank that will finance the projects was asking for a 3-percent interest on the loans, much higher than the 0.01-percent rate charged by Japan.
As for the oil and gas exploration talks, Liu said maritime disputes should not overshadow the bilateral ties between the two Asian neighbors.
“It seems there are legal barriers or factors standing in the way, but I hope that both sides will move about these issues in a way that is feasible, in a way that is practical, so that cooperation could be realized,” Liu said.