Chinese President Xi Jinping has reassured Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte that Filipino fishermen would continue to have access to the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea as he urged both Beijing and Manila to engage in maritime cooperation in the strategic waterway.

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During the meeting on the sidelines of the ongoing Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Lima, Peru on Saturday, Xi told Duterte that the maritime dispute should be used as an impetus for cooperation between the two nations.

Philippine officials, in a statement after the talks, said that the two leaders discussed the predicament of Filipino fishermen and had agreed that the resource-rich Scarborough Shoal would remain open to them.

Free access

"The Chinese leader vowed that the fishermen will continue to have free access to their traditional fishing grounds, apart from offering them training such as in fish culture to sustain their livelihood and families," the statement said.

The state-run news agency, Xinhua, on Saturday quoted Xi saying that he would like to improve Sino-Philippine relations.

Xi also said that the two nations should commit to helping each other and cooperate to resolve their differences.

New situations

Xi emphasized that China and the Philippines are facing new challenges in their bilateral ties as he called on both sides to enhance exchanges at all levels and discuss major common concerns in a bid to enhance mutual trust and cooperation.

China seized control of the Scarborough Shoal in 2012 following a two-month standoff with the Philippine Navy and had since banned Filipino fishermen from fishing in the area.

A verdict was handed down by the Hague-based court on July 12 that the Scarborough Shoal belongs to no one country and that it is the traditional fishing grounds for Chinese, Philippine, and Vietnamese fishermen. Duterte raised the plight of Filipino fishermen with Chinese officials during his visit to Beijing last month.

Two weeks after his visit, Philippine officials said the Chinese Coast Guard had left the vicinity of the shoal allowing Filipino fishermen to return to the area.

The Hague-based arbitration court had ruled that China has no legal basis for its claims to almost the entirety of the South China Sea. The court also stated that Beijing had violated the rights of the Philippines to explore its resources within its exclusive economic zone.

TagsPresident Xi Jinping, President Rodrigo Duterte, Scarborough Shoal, Filipino fishermen, South China Sea, Hague court ruling