Commentary: Sound Sino-Philippine ties to benefit all

As the Philippines is set to have a new president, Sino-Philippine relations become a topic again. Sound ties between China and the Philippines will benefit all and boost peace and development in the region, including the Philippines itself.

Tension between China and the Philippines has risen in recent years over the South China Sea issue, especially since Manila unilaterally initiated an arbitration case against China over the issue at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in early 2013, with the verdict likely to be announced in May or June.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said Friday that it is unrealistic to force China to concede or accept the verdict of the South China Sea arbitration case as a fait accompli.

"No matter what the verdict will be in the arbitration case initiated by the Philippines, it will be unlawful and invalid. China will not accept nor recognize it," he told a press briefing in Beijing.

In the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte has won the 2016 presidential election, according to preliminary statistics.

Duterte's domestic policies and his handling of the South China Sea issue draw attention.

During his election campaigns, Duterte has clearly noted that he has a similar position with China and that he does not believe that the South China Sea issue could be solved through a verdict by the arbitration court.

"I have a similar position as China's. I don't believe in solving the conflict through an international tribunal," Duterte told a press conference in Manila on April 7.

Of course, the disputes in the South China Sea are only one issue that the Philippines faces. It has more to handle at home, such as economic woes, corruption, crimes and drug abuses.

The Philippines is a developing country. It was one of the "Four Tigers" in Asia that created an economic growth miracle in the 1990s.

However, the country now is mired in economic woes, with high unemployment, swelling inflation, among others.

According to the World Bank, average per capita income in the Philippines ranked the 99th place in the world in 2014, behind Mongolia, Fiji and Tonga.

Duterte has vowed to crack down on corruption, crimes and drug abuses. He may also have looked at the country's economic situation, where development is a priority.

China is an important trade partner for the Philippines. According to official Philippine statistics, the Philippines enjoyed a trade surplus of 7.2 billion U.S. dollars with China in 2015.

More importantly, lack of infrastructure in the Philippines is a bottleneck that chokes the country's development, while China has unique experiences, funds and technologies in infrastructure development.

Some Philippine politicians disregarded the Philippine people's actual woes and tried to push their own agenda by shifting the attention of the Philippine public from domestic chaos to the South China Sea, and they would "only shoot themselves in the foot".

Quyang Yujing, director general of the Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said Friday that China and the Philippines have reached a number of agreements, including joint statements and communiques on resolving disputes through negotiation and consultation.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has noted that China is willing to work with the Philippines to rebuild normal, stable and sound friendly bilateral ties of good neighborliness, and that China is willing to handle all problems with the Philippines through dialogue and consultation.

Analysts said there are direct channels, agreements and consensus between China and the Philippines to solve their disputes through dialogue and consultation.

They noted that the Philippines has to abandon its Cold War thinking of confrontation and choose the right way to solve its disputes directly with China through dialogue and consultation, which will be beneficial to peace and development of the region and itself.

More outside meddlers only will make a solution more difficult and complicated. Endi