A little night music: Chinese envoy not unwelcome to first lady
A world-renowned classical pianist performing in Manila became an occasion for the recently appointed Chinese ambassador to reset his already rocky relations with Philippine officials this early in his new assignment.
The Chinese Embassy in Manila on Sunday shared a photo of first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan when they attended Chinese pianist Lang Lang’s one-night only concert at the Proscenium Theater in Rockwell, Makati City, on Saturday.
“Pleasant talk with the First Lady,” the embassy posted on its Facebook page.
The two were spotted briefly chatting and exchanging smiles during their encounter.
“What a treat to see Lang Lang live in Manila,” Araneta-Marcos said on her Instagram and Facebook accounts, giving more context to the cordial meeting. “A beautiful evening of music, mastery and shared moments with so many who came simply to listen and feel his magic.”
It was Lang Lang’s first concert in the Philippines.
Performed for world leaders
Based on TicketWorld’s rates, ticket prices to attend the one-night concert ranged from P6,180 to P25,750 for the most premium seats at the Proscenium Theater in Rockwell.
Lang Lang is best known for his renditions of Beethoven, Chopin and other classical masters, having performed with major orchestras and at many leading concert halls around the world.
The 43-year-old pianist has performed for a number of world leaders, including former US President Barack Obama, the late Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles of the United Kingdom, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Like other leading classical artists before him, he has also crossed over to other genres and played with such artists as Coldplay, Nicole Scherzinger, Pharrell Williams, Hans Zimmer, Psy and Metallica.
Word war
The warm and friendly encounter between Jing and the first lady happened just as President Marcos rejected calls to declare the Chinese ambassador persona non grata. The diplomat and some Philippine officials and legislators have been engaging in a word war over the West Philippine Sea, within the Philippines’ 370-kilometer (200-nautical-mile) exclusive economic zone.
This developed as Manila and Beijing resumed formal bilateral talks on maritime concerns and other areas of mutual interest, ahead of the Philippines’ hosting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) meetings this year.
Last week, 15 senators signed a resolution introduced by Sen. Risa Hontiveros expressing the chamber’s disapproval of Jing’s recent public statements for being contrary to “principles of mutual respect and noninterference” among nations.
In Cebu, after a one-year pause, the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Chinese Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs met on the sidelines of the Philippine-chaired foreign ministers meeting of the Asean.
COC: A three-decade issue
The meeting continued talks on the adoption of a Code of Conduct (COC) on the South China Sea, the long-sought framework designed to manage disputes and avert armed encounters in the strategic, resource-rich waterway.
China and Asean have been discussing the COC for three decades now, since 1996, following an encounter between the Philippine and Chinese navy the previous year at Mischief Reef.
In a speech in January, Jing, who assumed the Manila posting in December, expressed a commitment to fast-track the negotiations on the COC this year.
Mr. Marcos said he would use the Philippines’ chairman ship of the Asean this year to push for the conclusion of the negotiations for the COC.
He said the COC would make things “a bit easier” for countries around the South China Sea by preventing claimant countries from doing coercive and provocative acts, which could result in serious tensions.
Apart from the Philippines and China, Asean members Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei also have overlapping claims over the South China Sea.
