Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III on Monday, August 29 said "dialogue, diplomacy, and good neighborliness" are keys to solving Philippine-China territorial dispute over the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
"The solution depends on that. But we have to also be ready to have a long time horizon," Pimentel, a former Senate President, said of the ‘’proper settlement’’ with China as stated by a visiting Chinese official.
For his part, Senator Francis Tolentino said any settlement of the territorial dispute should be "rule-based."
"It should not stray away from the arbitral ruling and should be anchored on the general principles of international law," he added.
In 2016, the United Nations Arbitration Court rejected China’s "historical" claim over most parts of the South China Sea, including the WPS.
Yesterday, Minister Liu Jianchao of the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China said "we are ready to continue" the dialogue "in an effort to find a proper settlement" of the territorial and maritime disputes.
Liu said the South China Sea disputes should not negatively affect the overall relations between the Philippines and China.
He said Beijing hoped to gain peace and stability in the region.
Liu, a former ambassador to the Philippines, also met with Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and Speaker Martin Romualdez.