Marcos is ‘keeping up international pressure on Beijing,’ says lawmaker

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Laos’ Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet, Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo, Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, Vietnam’s Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Prime Minister of Timor-Leste Xanana Gusmao and Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr Kao Kim Hourn pose for a family photo at Government House during the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit, in Melbourne, Australia, March 6, 2024. (REUTERS/Jaimi Joy)

MANILA, Philippines — The Marcos administration is seeking support from the country’s allies amid its ongoing conflict and territorial dispute with China in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), a lawmaker revealed on Sunday.

Mandaluyong city Representative Neptali Gonzales II, chairman of the Special Committee on the West Philippine Sea, said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has been talking about these concerns in countries where he went to in 2023 and in January this year.

“He has been raising this issue in his meeting with leaders of the nations he has visited, including Australia last month and last week, and Vietnam in January,” Gonzales said in a statement.

“He is keeping up international pressure on Beijing, so the Chinese would back off their aggressive activities inside our territorial waters, including Ayungin Shoal off Palawan in the south and Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal) near Zambales and Pangasinan in the north, which China seized in 2012,” he said.

According to Gonzales, Marcos specifically secured Australia’s commitment after it agreed to strengthen their joint maritime activities to preserve peace within WPS and ensure the protection of Filipino fisherfolks.

The chief executive likewise signed three agreements in his Canberra trip, covering “maritime domain, cyber and critical technology, and effective implementation of competition laws and policies,” he added.

During his visit to Melbourne, on the other hand, Marcos had the chance to discuss the matter with the prime ministers of New Zealand and Cambodia.

Gonzales said the Chief Executive also signed a memorandum of understanding on ‘Incident and Management in the South China Sea,’ with Vietnam during his visit in January.