This proposed JV was announced following informal talks between the Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs and a Chinese delegation led by Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Manila.
According to Foreign Affairs Undersecretary, Franklin Ebdalin, "[Our] two countries are having consultations on how to develop the hotly contested Spratly Islands while the territorial issues remain unresolved. [The] joint projects might also build trust and confidence among [our] two countries and the other claimants in Southeast Asia, which could lead to an eventual resolution of the territorial issues."
"We have offered to jointly develop the area. We do not want the place to be undeveloped simply because we have different claims," he added.
To allay fears of the other claimants to the area - Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Brunei - Ebdalin stressed that the JVs were still in the proposal stages and that the Philippines and China would welcome "a multilateral development project in the contested Islands".
The Chinese Ambassador to Manila, Wang Chunggi, confirmed that his government was offering the Philippines a JV on Spratly Islands prospecting and urged other claimants to enter into similar agreements.
"Among the parties concerned, we think the only useful way is to put aside the differences at the time being. We try to work together with the Philippines to set an example on dispute settlement, like in the exploration of natural gas," said Wang.
