China and the Philippines moved closer to a controversial deal on oil and gas development in the South China Sea on Tuesday, in the latest sign of a deepening rapprochement between the two countries.
As Xi Jinping arrived in the Philippines for the first state visit by a Chinese leader in 13 years, a long-mooted bilateral understanding to unlock rich offshore deposits was signed between the two countries.
Relations between Beijing and Manila had frayed due to a longstanding territorial dispute over the South China Sea, but Rodrigo Duterte has tilted the Philippines away from its traditional ally, the US, and towards China after becoming president in 2016.
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