Xi, Duterte hail 'springtime' of ties

Beijing, Manila agree to handle maritime disputes properly, in what expert calls a 'welcome U-turn'

China and the Philippines agreed on Thursday to properly handle their maritime disputes and restore the bilateral ties soured by the South China Sea dispute.

The development is a "welcome U-turn" in the bilateral ties, said Jia Duqiang, a senior researcher of Southeast Asian studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.