No bilateral talks with China before tribunal decision: Incoming Philippine minister

Activists hold a protest in front of the Chinese Consular Office in Manila on June 10, 2016. PHOTO: AFP

MANILA (REUTERS) - The Philippines will not pursue bilateral talks with China until an international tribunal decides on a case brought by the Philippines in connection with claims in the South China Sea, incoming foreign affairs minister Perfecto Yasay said on Friday (June 10).

The Philippines has brought a case at an international tribunal in The Hague contesting China's claims, a case rejected by China which wants to solve the issue bilaterally.

"We should not pursue any bilateral talks at this time until we hear, or wait for, the outcome of the decision of the arbitral tribunal to come out," Yasay said in an interview with ABS-CBN news channel.

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