Marcos eyes maritime deal with Vietnam

The Philippines is looking forward to signing an agreement with Vietnam to strengthen maritime cooperation in the West Philippine Sea, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said on Thursday.

This came after a recent incident in the West Philippine Sea where the Chinese Coast Guard used water cannons and performed alleged dangerous maneuvers against Philippine vessels.

A note verbale was sent to China over the incident.

In his talks with outgoing Vietnam Ambassador to the Philippines Hoang Huy Chung, Marcos emphasized the importance of maritime cooperation between the two countries.

“Now that we are going to start discussions on the agreement that we have between the Philippines and Vietnam, I think it is a very, very important – it will be a very, very important part of our relationship and it will bring an element of stability to the problems that we are seeing now in the South China Sea,” Marcos said.

The President mentioned that this would be "a good, solid agreement" that is beneficial for both countries.

He said this agreement would make it easier for them to face the “common challenges” when it comes to territorial disputes in the South China Sea.

Like the Philippines, Vietnam also claims portions of the South China Sea.

“I really believe that we have to make these bilateral agreements. I think you will not be surprised and I think I’m not giving away any confidence that we will like to have these bilateral agreements as well with the other countries within ASEAN,” Marcos said.

The President said that the agreement “is going to be a very big step” between the two nations.

During the farewell call, Marcos expressed gratitude to Chung for his hard work and said that the deal between the two nations would be realized during his stint.

For his part, Chung said Vietnam President Vo Van Thuong extended his gratitude to Marcos and the Philippine government for working closely with them, especially on their common interest in the West Philippine Sea and to prevent further incidents in Philippine waters.

“And President, Vietnam, we have very respect for your thought that you are a friend to all, none enemy,” Chung told Marcos. — RSJ/VBL, GMA Integrated News