2012, 2013 declared friendship years for Philippines, China

GREAT WALL WALK. President Benigno Aquino III scales a high section of the Great Wall in Badaling, Beijing. He was accompanied by members of his Cabinet and had Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Liu Jianchao serve as tour guide. EDWIN BACASMAS

BEIJING—The Philippines and China have committed to strengthen their cooperation for peace and development following President Benigno Aquino III’s meetings with Chinese President Hu Jintao and two other Chinese leaders.

In a joint statement released by the two governments, Mr. Aquino and Hu declared 2012 and 2013 as the Philippines-China Years of Friendly Exchanges.

“Both sides agreed that this visit is a milestone in the development of Philippines–China bilateral relations,” the joint statement read.

It said the two leaders shared a positive assessment of the development of Philippine-China relations over the past 36 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1975.

“They reiterated their commitment to jointly pursue a long-term and stable relationship of strategic cooperation on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit…. The Philippines reaffirmed its adherence to the one-China policy,” the statement said.

It added that the two leaders also agreed that the Joint Action Plan for Strategic Cooperation signed by the two countries on Oct. 29, 2009, would continue to guide cooperation in all fields.

The positive results of Mr. Aquino’s meetings with Hu, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Wu Bangguo, chair of the standing committee of the National People’s Congress, came in the wake of a dispute over the Spratlys in the West Philippines Sea (South China Sea).

The Philippines, China and four other countries claim in whole or in part the Spratlys, a group of islands believed to contain oil and gas deposits.

The Philippines accused China early this year of harassing its oil survey ship in the area. On the other hand, China claimed that recent construction work on an island occupied by the Philippines violated the spirit of a preliminary agreement with other Southeast Asian nations.

“Both leaders exchanged views on the maritime disputes and agreed not to let the maritime disputes affect the broader picture of friendship and cooperation between the two countries,” the statement read.

Dialogue on Spratlys

It added that the two leaders reiterated their commitment “to addressing the disputes through peaceful dialogue, to maintain continued regional peace, security, stability and an environment conducive to economic progress.”

The statement also said that Mr. Aquino and Hu reaffirmed their commitments to respect and abide by the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea signed by China and members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2002.

“Acknowledging that the two countries are close neighbors bound by time-honored friendship, vibrant trade and sustained people-to-people contacts over the centuries, the two leaders committed themselves to continue strengthening the strategic and cooperative relationship for peace and development between the Philippines and China,” the statement read.

Support for PPP

Among the 17 points of the joint statement was China’s expression of support for the Philippine President’s public-private partnership (PPP) program and its commitment to encourage its qualified companies to participate in the competitive bidding procedures of the program.

The PPP program aims to build the country’s public infrastructure using private investors’ funds to free up government money for social services.

The Philippines, for its part, expressed appreciation to China for its development assistance to various economic, agricultural and infrastructure projects in the country.