Posted on 03/14/2005 11:49:58 PM PST by nickcarraway
A diplomatic breakthrough for peace and security in the region.
This was how President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo described the agreement between the Philippines, China and Vietnam to jointly study the oil potential of the disputed Spratly Islands.
The President was presented a copy of the tripartite agreement for joint marine seismic undertaking in the South China Sea signed by the Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC), China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) and Vietnam Oil and Gas Corp. (PetroVietnam) earlier Monday.
"This is a historic event because it is the breakthrough in implementing the provisions of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea among ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) and China, to turn the South China Sea into an area of cooperation rather than an area of conflict,” Ms Arroyo said in a speech during awarding ceremonies for outstanding electric cooperatives.
Last week, Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo had declared that the Philippines' dispute with China over the Spratlys had been settled with the signing of a joint study agreement between oil exploration firms in the two countries.
The participation of Vietnam was significant because it was the only claimant (the others are Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan) that had frowned on the Philippine-China joint study last year.
Vietnam had claimed the deal would violate a provision of the 2002 Code of Conduct signed by the claimants to refrain from actions that could disturb the volatile peace on the islands.
The agreement entered into with Vietnam stipulated that it would not undermine the basic positions held by the respective governments on the South China Sea. Each country will shoulder a third of the cost.
Security fears allayed
Eduardo Mañalac of PNOC brushed aside fears about the security of the oil experts who would conduct the study on the Spratlys where all the claimants, except for Brunei, had troops stationed in the area and where there had been deadly clashes in the past. The President said the agreement was also a "breakthrough for our energy independence program.”
"One of the elements of this program is to work on strategic alliances with our friends and allies, so that we can have more supply of energy for the region and our country,” Ms Arroyo said.
The three-year seismic survey and research area is clearly defined by specific geographic coordinates, spanning about 143,000 square kilometers.
Commercial transaction
While agreeing to jointly conduct research in the area, Mañalac said the three countries would maintain their respective positions with regard to the South China Sea issue.
He stressed that the agreement was a commercial transaction and not at all linked to the political views of each of the national oil firms' governments.
"We're not doing this on account of the dispute. This is a transaction among three national oil companies to see if there are resources to develop (in the area),” he said.
"There are no references to political claims and territorial rights. That's a factor to the quick progress of this agreement,” he said.
Although not political in nature, he said the three signatories to the tripartite agreement were well aware that certain issues and even further disputes could come from the other Spratly claimants who were not part of the joint undertaking.
However, he said, the agreement signatories were hopeful the undertaking would serve as a model that other countries could follow, in terms of setting aside political disputes to work together in attaining the goal of Asian energy independence.
"We hope we can apply these principles and most of the conditions in this agreement to form more alliances with other national oil companies,” he said.
Under the agreement, PNOC, CNOOC and PetroVietnam would equally share the costs involved in conducting seismic research within the agreement area.
Costs to be determined
The agreement covers pre-exploration activities only and does not involve any drillings or actual explorations.
The entire project cost, Mañalac said, would be determined later in future meetings among the three national oil firms.
Work would be done by a team composed of people from PNOC, CNOOC and PetroVietnam, he said.
Signing the agreement were Mañalac, CNOOC vice president Zhiu Shouwei and PetroVietnam president and chief executive Tran Ngoc Canh.
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