Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte plans to hold talks with both Chinese President Xi Jinping and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during his first official state visit to China between October 19-21.

Political analysts privy to plans for Duterte's visit said on Friday that the Philippine leader's trip to China could pave the way for a major shift in the country's alliances in the East Asia.

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Ties between Washington and Manila have been strained after US justice officials called on Duterte to stop the alleged extrajudicial killings of drug dealers in the Philippines. Up to 3,000 drug dealers are estimated to have been killed since President Duterte took office.

Pillar

The relationship between the US and the Philippines, which has been one of the the pillars of Washington's strategy to rebalance power in Asia, has been put to the test since Duterte came to power three months ago.

Philippine foreign affair officials said ties between the US and the Philippines have been under strain following Duterte's inflammatory comments against the US.

After insulting Obama and declaring the end of annual joint US-Philippine military exercises, Duterte said he would pursue a more independent foreign policy than the Philippines has in the past which includes the possibility of opening trade and military alliances with China and Russia.

Bitter dispute

While Duterte's plan to limit the Philippines' economic and military reliance on the US, Manila has been pursuing peace with Beijing after years of being locked in a bitter dispute over territories in the South China Sea.

Zhao Jianhua, the Chinese ambassador to Manila, said on Tuesday that Beijing and Manila have been interacting on a friendly basis since Duterte assumed office.

"Ever since President Duterte took office, China and Philippines have been engaging in friendly interactions, which have yielded a series of positive results," said Zhao at a Chinese National Day reception held at the embassy on Tuesday.

Two dozen businessmen

High-ranking diplomats and business officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Duterte would be accompanied by at least two dozen businessmen who are expected to forge several economic deals with China during his upcoming three-day visit.

Duterte has said that the July 12 arbitration court ruling and giving the Filipinos fishing rights in the Scarborough Shoal will be at the top of his agenda during his China visit.

Although Duterte wants China to abide by the ruling, he said that will not insist that the ruling should be implemented and will instead opt for negotiations to resolve the conflict.

On July 12, the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled that China has no legal basis to claim several reefs and islands in the South China Sea. The court stated that Beijing's action had violated the Philippines' rights to explore its resources within its exclusive economic zone.

In the same ruling, the PCA said the Scarborough Shoal is the traditional fishing grounds of Chinese, Filipino, and Vietnamese fishermen and no country has sole legal rights over the shoal.

China rejected the ruling, dismissing it as "illegal" and "null and void." President Xi Jinping has reiterated that any future talks, actions, and propositions by any state based on the ruling will not be accepted by Beijing.

TagsChina visit, President Rodrigo Duterte, Chinese President Xi jinping, alliances, Philippine drug war, South China Sea, extrajudicial killings, china