Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend the 29th China-Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Leaders' Meeting, scheduled to be held in the Philippine capital, Manila, on Nov. 15 and 16.
Li will travel to Manila at the invitation of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., whose country holds the rotating ASEAN chairmanship, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters Wednesday.
Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun skipped a meeting of Southeast Asian defense chiefs and their dialogue partners in Manila last month.
Instead of its defense chief, Beijing sent its defense attache in the Philippines to the meeting.
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the ASEAN-China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
"Over the past five years, under the guidance of the leaders of the two sides, China-ASEAN cooperation - a leading example in the region - has been flourishing and fruitful, benefiting the respective countries and peoples and making a great contribution to peace, stability and prosperity in the region," Guo said.
Through the summit, China looks to work with ASEAN countries to strengthen solidarity and mutual trust, build consensus on cooperation, facilitate the early entry into force of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area, upgrade the protocols and deepen cooperation in AI, the digital economy, energy security, interconnectivity and poverty reduction, the spokesperson further said.
In a rare directive, the Philippine Foreign Ministry on Sunday asked its officials and agencies not to independently determine the direction of the country's diplomatic approach toward China or any other international partner.
"Under the Constitution, the president is the chief architect of Philippine foreign policy. Individual officials, agencies or sectors do not independently determine the direction of our international relations," the ministry said in a statement.
"Whatever personal convictions public officials may hold, their public platforms carry institutional responsibilities. They may not pursue preferred approaches toward China, or any other international partner, without regard for the consequences on the government's overall policy," the statement added.
"Personal advocacies must never serve interests other than the national interest."
The rare directive comes after some Philippine lawmakers and officials made anti-China statements in recent weeks, triggering a war of words with the Chinese side.
