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President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday urged the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to accelerate the implementation or adoption of regional agreements on public health, a code of conduct in disputed waters and a free trade pact that could become the most biggest in the world.
Speaking by videoconference at the annual Asean summit hosted by Vietnam this year, Duterte described the COVID-19 pandemic as the “definitive challenge of our generation.”
“Throughout the year, we strive to strike a fine balance between saving lives and keeping our economies afloat. Now we are faced with the complexity and enormity of the recovery process. Our goal is a comprehensive recovery to rebuild better, healthier and more prosperous societies, ”he said.
Priority
“Our immediate priority is health security. We have to strengthen our health systems by ensuring the unimpeded supply of medical supplies and technologies and by improving early warning systems for health emergencies, ”he said.
“We must work together to ensure that all nations, rich or poor, have access to safe vaccines. No one is safe until we all are, ”he said as Western nations hoarded the global supply of potential drugs and vaccines against COVID-19, which has affected 1,026,004 people in the 10 nations alone as of Thursday. ASEAN.
Therefore, the president called for an expedited implementation of the ASEAN COVID-19 Response Fund, the ASEAN Regional Medical Supply Reserve, and the ASEAN Center for Public Health Emergencies and Emerging Diseases.
Free trade agreement
Mr. Duterte also welcomed the conclusion of the negotiations for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that began in 2012. The RCEP aims to create a free trade agreement between the 10 ASEAN member economies plus China, Japan. , South Korea, New Zealand and Australia, which account for a third of the world’s population and almost 30 percent of the world’s economic output.
The agreement, to be signed on Sunday, will also be open to other economies in Central Asia, South Asia and Oceania.
Long wait
The president also called for the swift adoption of the South China Sea Code of Conduct, which has been debated by various Southeast Asian neighbors, including the Philippines and China, for the past 18 years, or since 2002.
“We are committed to the immediate conclusion of a substantive and effective Code of Conduct in the South China Sea. And if I may add, it’s been a long time and it’s a long wait, ”Duterte said.
“The way we approach this issue reveals our strengths and weaknesses as a Community. We must act quickly, ”he said.
The president said the Philippines remains “one with Asean in transforming the South China Sea into a sea of peace and prosperity for all,” he added.
PH position
Mr. Duterte also said that the “clear and firm” Philippine position was that maritime disputes should be resolved peacefully and in accordance with international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos).
He also reiterated his statement at the United Nations General Assembly in September that the 2016 arbitration award rejecting China’s excessive maritime claims over southern China was “an authoritative interpretation of the application of Unclos.”
“Now it is part of international law. And its importance cannot be diminished or ignored by any country, no matter how great and powerful it may be, ”said the president.
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