The Philippine aspect has used the mechanism that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. stated he proposed in Beijing following stories that the Chinese coast guard drove away Filipino fishers in waters off Ayungin Shoal.
In an interview with tv news anchors together with Ivan Mayrina of GMA Integrated News, Marcos stated he hoped that the Chinese aspect would carry the knowledge to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“So we have immediately used that thing, that mechanism that I talked about [with which] we can even immediately contact the Chinese government, and hopefully our counterparts on the other side can bring it to President Xi’s attention, this problem, and we have done that,” Marcos stated.
“But it doesn’t preclude us from persevering with to make protests and persevering with to ship be aware verbale regarding this,” he added.
Marcos said that he proposed the communication mechanism to Xi during his state visit to Beijing earlier this month. They have yet to reach an agreement on the matter.
Reports said a CCG vessel 5204 and a speed boat drove Filipino fishermen away in the Ayungin Shoal, which is some 100 nautical miles off Palawan but is likewise near Mischief Reef, an area in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) reportedly occupied by China.
Marcos earlier said he had an agreement with President Xi Jinping that China would allow Filipino fisherfolk to continue with their work in the highly contested waters.
During their bilateral meeting in Beijing, the two leaders also “promised that we’d discover a compromise and discover a answer that shall be useful in order that our fishermen may have the ability to fish once more of their pure fishing grounds.” —NB, GMA Integrated News
