Philippine President's accords with China provoke indignation in the West
Rodrigo Duterte announced the decision regarding joint economic activities with China in the exclusively economic zone of the Philippines (this zone is prescribed in Philippine law). This is a joint project of Manila and Beijing on the exploration of oil fields in the Reed Bank area (Reed Bank). This is a reef-island site in the South China Sea north-east of the disputed Spratly Archipelago.
Earlier, an international court in The Hague put up a barrier to China’s participation in exploration in the Reed Bank area, citing the fact that the islands do not belong to China.
Rodrigo Duterte said China’s participation in the project is economically viable for the Philippines. According to him, there are agreements with Beijing on the division of deposits in the Reed Bank in the proportions of 60 to 40 (60 - Philippine, 40 - Chinese).
In the West, this decision of the Philippine president provoked outrage. So, on the sidelines of international arbitration, they said that in this way Duterte "violates constitutional norms, in fact refusing to consider the 12-mile zone in the Reed Bank area as part of the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines." This statement was picked up in the United States.
One gets the impression that in the US and The Hague they decided to identify themselves as the main defenders of the Philippine constitution ...
Duterte said that for him the economic development of the country is more important, and therefore he does not intend to follow the decisions adopted outside the Philippines and going against the interests of the Philippines.
In the Philippines themselves, it was noted that the Western negative is primarily due to the fact that for the United States itself, constant tension in relations between Manila and Beijing is beneficial. Duterte decided to remove this tension by offering China cooperation in the development of mineral resources near the disputed archipelago.
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