China-friendly Laos faces pressure to prioritise Asean’s interests on South China Sea, Myanmar

Although Marcos Jnr eventually clarified that he did not endorse Taiwan’s independence and remained committed to the one-China policy, the incident sparked a heated exchange between officials from both countries, adding to the existing diplomatic strain.

Under Beijing’s one-China principle, Taiwan is a breakaway province to be eventually reunited, by force if necessary. Although most countries, including the United States and the Philippines, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, the US is against the use of force to assert control of the island.

The Philippines, located just 142km away from Taiwan, has expressed concerns about tensions in the Taiwan Strait.

According to defence analyst Joshua Bernard Espena, Manila has been signalling to Beijing that its actions are reflective of its national interests in the face of China’s efforts to “consolidate its presence” in the South China Sea as well as the Taiwan Strait.

“To be embroiled in a conflict is to say that we are either reactive or we are thinking of how we are going to benefit in a time of crisis such as this one because we cannot stop or predict Beijing’s timeline,” he said.

“We need to take into account that the Philippines has no choice but to take proactive stances,” added Espena, who is Vice-President at the International Development and Security Cooperation think tank in Manila.

China has overlapping claims with several Southeast Asian nations in the South China Sea.

The Southeast Asian claimants, despite some internal differences, reject Beijing’s “nine-dash line” claim to around 90 per cent of the waterway.

Aristyo Rizka Darmawan, a lecturer in international law at the University of Indonesia, said Asean might not be well-equipped to respond immediately