The United States Senate may have done it, but at least two Philippine senators do not see the need to pass a resolution expressing concern about China’s actions in the disputed West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, who held backchannel talks with Chinese officials last year, said passing a resolution similar to the one approved by the US Senate’s foreign relations committee is “unnecessary” because the matter has already been brought to a United Nations (UN) arbitration tribunal. “It [A resolution] will be redundant since our President, through the Department of Foreign Affairs, have already articulated our foreign policy on the matter,” Trillanes, who chairs the Senate national defense committee, said in a text message. The US Senate passed on Monday a resolution listing several worrying Chinese behavior, including Beijing’s move to issue an official map defining the contested West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) as within its national border. On Friday, China opposed the passing of the US Senate resolution, and announced that it has filed a formal complaint against the US for the action of its legislature. ‘No difference’ Last January, the Philippines brought its territorial dispute with China before the UN tribunal, asking Beijing “to desist from unlawful activities that violate the sovereign rights and jurisdiction of the Philippines under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). China is asserting its historial claim on the entire West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). The Philippines, however, is claiming its ownership Read More …
