The Philippines and South Korea will be holding their second maritime dialogue next week to tackle various issues, including the developments in the West Philippine and South China Sea, South Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Lee Sang-hwa said.
Discussions will be taken as Manila and Seoul believe that "the free and open Indo-Pacific is a key to thriving, connected and stable, reasonable environments," Lee said in his speech at the celebration of Korea National Day and Armed Forces Day on Tuesday night.
According to him, both sides are expecting to cover in their talks a wide variety of issues that will include maritime ecosystem, maritime ecosystem protection, and the safety and security in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea.
Manila and Seoul will also talk about the Philippine-Korea military and defense industry cooperation, which he said "is ever growing."
The first maritime dialogue between the two sides was held in September 2022 in Busan, where the two sides agreed to strengthen ties on maritime domain awareness, marine environment protection, ocean economy and capacity building, among others.
"We are very lucky and fortunate to have the Philippines as our key partner who we can trust and rely on," he said.
In August this year, South Korea joined the US and Japan in opposing activities in the South China Sea that are against international law.
President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and President Yoon Suk Yeol expressed their shared concern on developments in the waters that are "inconsistent with the rules-based international order" and that "undermine regional peace and prosperity."
They said they "strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the waters of the Indo-Pacific" as they recalled their condemnation of China's "dangerous and aggressive behavior."
Prior to that, the Korean Embassy in Manila also issued a strong stand against China's use of water cannon against Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels.
"The ROK Embassy in the Philippines is concerned about the actions that raise tensions in these waters," the Korean embassy said in its statement, adding it was reaffirming "its support for peace, stability, and rules-based order in the South China Sea, as an important international sea lane of communications, and for the freedom of navigation and overflight based on the principles of international law, including UNCLOS."
Lee, in a separate interview with reporters on Tuesday night, said Seoul joined other nations in voicing their concern on the aggression in the waters because it is in line with its "firm belief and standing position about the importance of peace and stability in this region."
"We should...add our voice to the growing concern about the situation," he said.
Lee said "some agreements" and memoranda of understanding are already on the table, but he said he is not sure "whether we could be able to sign those during the maritime dialogue."
"But it is just a matter of time," he added.