Justice Carpio: VFA with China ‘difficult’

Having a Visiting Forces Agreement with a country claiming another’s territory like China would be difficult, Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio said on Wednesday.

“It’s difficult to have a VFA with a country that’s claiming your territory and your maritime zones,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the Maritime Security Symposium 2017, which was hosted by the Philippine Navy.

“How can you have military naval exercises if you are doing it with a country that’s claiming that West Philippine Sea. For me, it’s common sense,” he said.

President Rodrigo Duterte earlier said he would be open to holding joint patrols with China in Sulu Sea to combat terrorist groups like the Abu Sayyaf.

But security officials said there should be a VFA with China before the two countries could hold joint patrols.

The VFA is an agreement between a country and a foreign nation having military forces visiting in that country. It is needed so foreign military troops can hold joint military exercises with the Philippines.

China and the Philippines previously had strained relations over the West Philippine Sea, over which they both have overlapping claims. But the relationship of the two countries warmed up after Duterte assumed office last year.

Carpio agreed that a relationship of two countries should not be limited to a single issue.

“We have a dispute with China but we can go on trading with China,” he said. “Normal relations can continue, but of course there are other matters that we cannot do like we cannot have a visiting forces agreement with them. They are claiming our territories.”

He also urged the Philippines to ask China to abide by the arbitral ruling invalidating the latter’s nine-dash-line claim.

“We should engage with China because to convince China to comply with the ruling, we have to talk to them,” he said. “If we don’t talk to them, if we don’t talk to their people, they probably would not know that they have to comply with the ruling.” /atm