The relationship between China and the Philippines, which has been strained by territorial disputes in the South China Sea, will experience a fresh start after incoming Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte assumes office, experts here said on Friday. 

"Every incoming president, every incoming administration has the advantage of a fresh start," Lauro Baja, a former ambassador, told Xinhua in an exclusive interview. 

Relations between China and the Philippines have soured during the six-year of outgoing President Benigno Aquino, whose government brought China to the United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague over the disputes in the South China Sea. 

Unlike Aquino, incoming President Duterte, who will assume office on June 30, has said that he is willing to engage China in bilateral talks on the issue. 

Benito Lim, political science professor at the University of the Philippines and Ateneo de Manila University, said Duterte is the new president so he has to show that he is willing to accommodate and he is ready to talk. 

"Very likely he looks like he is a very open minded person. There are two things that can happen: either we talk to China or we continue this conflict. The larger picture is we should ask ourselves: what did we get from this long conflict? What's wrong if we talk to them?" Lim added. 

Baja said that, by the pronouncements of Duterte, he seems to be more open to talking to China than the incumbent president (Benigno Aquino). 

"What I believe is this: there must be some lines of communication between China and the Philippines, which does not exist effectively right now," Baja said. 

Emil P. Jurado, a columnist, wrote in Thursday's Newspaper, The Standard, that the proposed bilateral talks with China seems to be a good move. 

"I believe there's no substitute to dialogue when two countries have differences and disputes," said Jurado. 


FRIENDLY OVERTURES 

Earlier this week, Duterte hailed Chinese President Xi Jinping as a "great president" in a press conference in response to a message the Chinese president sent to congratulate him on winning the May 9 presidential elections. 

In his message, Xi said that he hopes the two sides would "get bilateral relations back on track of sound development." 

"A friendly, stable and sound China-Philippines relationship is in the fundamental interests of the two countries and the two peoples," Xi said. 

Perfecto Yasay, Duterte's handpick for his foreign secretary, has sounded a conciliatory note towards thawing of bilateral relations between the two counties. 

"I don't think that there is another way of resolving this dispute except talking to each other," Yasay told reporters this week. 

"We certainly would like to make sure that we are able to resume bilateral talks because these are necessary," he added. 

Baja said that he has noticed that China is receptive to the friendly overtures from the Philippine sides. 

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said that he welcomed a possible warming of relations with the Philippines. 

"The door of dialogue between China and the Philippines is always open," Wang told a news conference in Ottawa, Canada where he was on an official visit earlier this week. 

"If the Philippines sincerely wants to come back to the track of dialogue and negotiations, we welcome that," he added. 

INDEPENDENCE FROM AMERICA 

Duterte told reporters earlier this week that the Philippines would not rely on the United States for long-term security, saying the Philippines is going to charter a course of its own. 

"We will be charting a course of our own. It will not be dependent on America, and it will not be a line intended to please anybody but the Filipino interest," he said. 

Baja pointed out that it was at the prodding of the U.S. that the Philippines opted for multilateral approach on the South China Sea issue, he noted, adding "that shows that the U.S. is only after its national interest. If it is to the interest of the U.S. that we go bilateral with China, and of course they will agree." 

"Vietnam and China talk to each other and they were able to demarcate their line, their land border. They were able to come to an agreement also on their sea border, and they have a substantive trade and other relations," he explained. 

(Dario B. Agnote also contributed to the story)