Philippine SC Declares Tripartite Energy Deal With China, Vietnam Unconstitutional

, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Jan, 2023 ) :The Philippine Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday declared the country's tripartite agreement with China and Vietnam for energy exploration in the disputed South China Sea void and unconstitutional.

"The Supreme Court En Banc, voting 12-2-1, today declared unconstitutional and void the Tripartite Agreement for Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JSMU)," it announced in a written statement.

"The Court ruled that the JSMU is unconstitutional for allowing wholly-owned foreign corporations to participate in the exploration of the country's natural resources," it said.

The court ruling further stressed that the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking signed by the three countries on March 14, 2005 is void due to its violation of "the 1987 Constitution, which mandates that the exploration, development and utilization (EDU) of natural resources shall be under the full control and supervision of the State.

" Last week, China and the Philippines hinted that the two maritime neighbors may resume joint energy exploration in the disputed South China Sea.

The Philippines had declared an end to negotiations with China on joint energy exploration in the disputed waters in June.

In 2018, Manila and Beijing signed an agreement to explore for oil and gas reserves in the South China Sea, a hotspot of conflicting territorial claims by several countries apart from China and the Philippines.