By Monitoring Desk
Hong Kong: Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Philippine counterpart President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. have agreed to further strengthen economic relations and resume dialogue on oil exploration. According to a joint statement issued on Thursday, President Xi held meeting with the President of the Philippines in Beijing. During the meeting, the two leaders agreed to properly manage differences and restart talks on oil exploration in the South China Sea.
South China Sea
The statement added that the two countries have an in-depth discussion about the situation in the South China Sea and reaffirmed the significance of maintaining and promoting stability and peace in the region. During the meeting, Beijing and Manila also agreed to restart talks on oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea.
In the joint statement, the two leaders pledged to find a solution that would permit Philippine fishermen to conduct their activities in the Southeast Asian country’s fishing grounds. To that end, Beijing and Manila also announced plans to establish a direct line of communication between their maritime institutions.
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President Marcos Jr. said that President Xi vowed to extend support to the Philippines including infrastructure, agriculture, and maritime security, with the two sides signing a total of 14 bilateral agreements. China’s Foreign Ministry said that the Chinese President also pledged wide-ranging cooperation opportunities with the Philippines.
