South China Sea peace a ‘non-negotiable’ – PH, Vietnam

By Darryl John Esguerra, Philippine News Agency

ELEVATED TIES. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and visiting Vietnamese President Tô Lâm hold a bilateral meeting in Malacañang on Monday (June 1, 2026). Lam’s two-day state visit to Manila coincides with the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations and a decade of the two countries’ strategic partnership. (PCO photo)

MANILA – The Philippines and Vietnam on Monday declared peace, stability, and freedom of navigation in the South China Sea to be “non-negotiable” as the two claimant states elevated bilateral ties and renewed a key defense cooperation agreement.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., following bilateral talks with visiting Vietnamese President To Lam, said both countries, which are among the claimant states in the disputed waters, agreed that preserving stability in the South China Sea is “non-negotiable.”

“As fellow claimant states, we reaffirm that maintaining peace, stability, and the freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea remains non-negotiable,” Marcos said.

The statement came as Manila and Hanoi renewed their 2010 defense cooperation agreement, a move expected to strengthen collaboration in maritime security, military education, and disaster risk reduction and management.

The South China Sea remains one of Asia’s most strategically important waterways, with an estimated one-third of global maritime trade passing through it annually.

The Philippines, Vietnam, China, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan maintain overlapping claims in parts of the resource-rich sea.

Both Manila and Hanoi have separately faced maritime tensions with China over competing territorial claims in recent years.

Marcos said the Philippines and Vietnam remain committed to resolving disputes peacefully and in accordance with international law.

“We stand resolute in our commitment to the peaceful resolution of disputes, grounded firmly in international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award,” he said.

Marcos is referring to the 2016 arbitral ruling that invalidated China’s expansive “nine-dash line” claim over most of the South China Sea and upheld the Philippines’ maritime entitlements under UNCLOS. Beijing, however, continues to reject the decision.

While Vietnam was not a party to the arbitration case, Hanoi has consistently emphasized adherence to international law and UNCLOS in addressing maritime disputes.

Beyond defense, Marcos and Lam also discussed combating transnational threats such as internet fraud, human trafficking, illegal gambling and people smuggling through enhanced intelligence-sharing and law enforcement coordination.

The upgrade coincides with the approaching 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2026 and comes as the Philippines chairs the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

This article is republished from PNA.