US, China Top Diplomats to Attend ASEAN Meetings in PH

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi are expected to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and related meetings in Metro Manila next week, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Thursday. DFA spokesperson on ASEAN matters Dominic Xavier Imperial confirmed the attendance of both officials in a press briefing in Pasay City. However, Imperial noted that it remains unclear which specific meetings the two top diplomats will participate in. "At least we know that they will be attending next week's meeting, which specifically, of course, it will be up to them on which of these meetings they will be attending," Imperial said. According to Imperial, numerous other countries are scheduled to attend the ASEAN meetings, including Russia, Australia, New Zealand, India, Canada, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Norway, Switzerland, and Turkey. One of the expected outcomes of the meetings is a document that covers political security, economic, and sociocultural engagements of the ASEAN, as well as the regional and international issues. Meanwhile, Imperial clarified that discussions related to Batanes are not part of the ASEAN agenda. "On the Batanes issue, I don't want to pre-empt what the discussions would be, but I believe it's not an ASEAN issue, it's not part of the ASEAN discussions," Imperial said. To recall, the Philippines dismissed claims by supposed Chinese scholars that Batanes was a natural geographic extension of Taiwan, thus China should exercise sovereignty over it. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said, "Flights of fancy should not be dignified with a response," adding that the Philippines "will not entertain revisionist claims over its territory." Defense Secretary Gilberto "Gibo" Teodoro Jr. said the claim could be viewed as a "quasi-state statement" and called it "ridiculous." Although not an official statement of the Chinese government, Teodoro said the reported assertion by Chinese scholars "is signaling on their part." GMA News has sought a comment from the Chinese Embassy in Manila, but it has yet to reply as of posting time. The ASEAN Summit, first held in Bali, Indonesia in 1976, is a biannual meeting that brings together Southeast Asian leaders to tackle regional challenges, deepen partnerships, and map out long-term goals for the organization. The Philippines previously held the chairmanship of the regional bloc in 1987, 1999, 2006, and 2017, prior to its upcoming chairship in 2026.