AS the Philippines prepares to commemorate the 10th anniversary of its supposed 2016 arbitral victory against China, an unexpected critic has emerged, and it’s not Beijing: Malaysia.
Malaysia’s former foreign minister Saifuddin Abdullah recently argued that Manila’s decision to revive and internationalize the South China Sea arbitration has contributed to regional tensions, invited foreign intervention and undermined Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) centrality. He urged the Philippines to embrace “quiet diplomacy” and warned against “making too much noise.”