12 August 2016: Ex-Philippine leader ends his five-day ‘icebreaking’ visit to China
On Monday Fidel Ramos has set out for a visit to Hong-Kong, China. Before the trip he reassured that he wouldn’t raise the issue of the recent international ruling on the South China Sea; his mission was to rekindle relations with Beijing. Ernesto Abella the spokesman for the current Philippine president said that ‘this may pave the way for future diplomatic talks’. Ramos met with Fu Ying, chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of China's top legislature and former Chinese ambassador to the Philippines from 1998 to 2000, as well as his former colleagues. His visit was not part of official negotiations with China, but passed in a hopeful atmosphere. China’s sate news agency said that Ramos’s visit was ‘the first concrete step’ for both sides to engage and ‘could open a new chapter in settling disputes’.
