Xi to attend APEC talks amid tension

President Xi Jinping will attend the APEC summit in Manila next week, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced on Monday.

He will travel to the Philippines amid tension between Beijing and Manila over the situation in the South China Sea.

Xi will leave for Manila on Nov 17 to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit that will last until Nov 19, the ministry said on its website.

Before this, the president will attend the G20 summit in Turkey, it said. The summit is being held in the southwestern city of Antalya on Sunday and Monday.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a regular media briefing on Monday that Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit the Philippines on Tuesday.

Wang will meet "high-ranking officials including Philippine leaders and the foreign minister" to prepare for Xi's attendance at the APEC meeting and to "exchange views on how to improve China-Philippine relations".

"At present, for reasons that everyone knows about, China-Philippine relations are facing difficulties. This is something China does not wish to see," Hong said.

"China pays great attention to relations with the Philippines and is willing to appropriately resolve relevant issues on the basis of dialogue and negotiation."

Shi Yinhong, a professor at the School of International Studies at Renmin University of China, said: "The APEC summit is an important multilateral meeting. China's attendance will not be affected by the location of the meeting."

He said Xi's attendance does not mean "any change in China's stance on the South China Sea issue".

Wang Yuzhu, a researcher at the National Institute of International Strategy at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the foreign minister's stay in Manila will "provide precious opportunities for the two nations to discuss and improve their ties".

"Face-to-face meetings will certainly help with the situation, and I'm sure they will have candid talks," he said.

lixiaokun@chinadaily.com.cn