NB Explains | India, Philippines on the same page against Chinese aggression

New Delhi, June 30: Reiterating the call for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific, India on Thursday backed a 2016 legally binding ruling that strongly refuted China's expansive claims in its dispute with the Philippines over South China Sea (SCS) waters.

 

 

 

Foreign minister S Jaishankar and his Philippines counterpart Enrique Manalo, who co-chaired a meeting on bilateral cooperation, underlined in a joint statement the need for peaceful settlement of disputes and for adherence to international law, especially the UNCLOS and the 2016 Arbitral Award on the SCS.

 

 

While India's support for UNCLOS, under which the Arbitral Tribunal was instituted, has always been unequivocal, the joint statement is significant as it unambiguously called upon China to adhere to a ruling Beijing continues to call null and void.

 

Tensions are high in contested parts of the sea, one of the world's most important trade routes and a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce. However, China claims almost the entire sea as its territory and says disputes should be left to countries in the region to settle without outside interference.

 

 

On Defense Cooperation, both Ministers expressed keen interest to continue to work together in this sector, including through the regular or upgraded official level interaction among defense agencies, opening of the resident Defense Attaché office in Manila, consideration of India’s offer for concessional Line of Credit to meet Philippines’ defense requirements, acquisition of naval assets, and expansion of training and joint exercises on maritime security and disaster response, among others.