Speaking ahead of his flight, Marcos said he looked forward to meeting President Xi Jinping and that "the issues between our two countries are problems that do not belong between two friends such as the Philippines and China". Last week, a Philippine foreign ministry official said talks with Xi would include China's actions in the South China Sea. While the Philippines is a defence ally of the United States, under Duterte it set aside a territorial spat over the South China Sea in exchange for Chinese investment. Beijing claims much of the South China Sea, where about $3 trillion in ship-borne trade passes annually, with the area becoming a flashpoint for Chinese and U.S. tensions around naval operations. But while De Castro expects the South China Sea issue to be brought up, he does not expect Beijing to alter its position.

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