Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Saturday revealed that his meeting with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang was fruitful since it enabled Manila and Beijing to clarify "some pronouncements."
Marcos remarked that some of the recent pronouncements made by the two countries and many other countries may have been misinterpreted.
He continued that being able to speak with Minister Qin Gang was really useful, so they could talk about the things that needed to work out.
After his first in-person bilateral discussion with Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo on Saturday, Qin met Marcos in Malaca&ntilde;ang.
The Chief Executive did not elaborate, but the statement comes in the aftermath of Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian's recent remarks about Filipino laborers in Taiwan, which prompted criticism, particularly from politicians.
On Friday, Huang stated that the US plans to use the additional locations established under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) to intervene in the Taiwan Strait crisis.
He stated that Beijing "reserves the option of taking all necessary measures" across the Taiwan Strait and urged Manila to resist "Taiwan independence" if it truly cared about the 150,000 Filipinos who labor there.
Manalo previously reaffirmed Manila's support for the One China Policy while also voicing alarm over rising tensions across the Taiwan Strait.
However, he emphasized that the Philippines will continue to pursue an independent foreign policy aimed at ensuring regional peace and prosperity.
Concerning the South China Sea dispute, Marcos stated that he and Qin agreed to develop more "lines of communication" to defuse tensions and rapidly settle any events at sea.

you might like

Marcos, Qin talks productive: "Tt was really useful"