As Chinese President Hu Jintao greeted his Philippine counterpart Benigno Aquino in Beijing recently at the start of a state visit, the official Xinhua news agency laid out terms for a sustained improvement in relations between the world's second biggest economy and its much smaller and weaker Southeast Asian neighbor.

The agency said it had to be acknowledged that a stable and sound bilateral relationship should be underpinned not only by strong trade ties but also by commitment to a proper settlement of maritime disputes in the South China Sea, where Beijing's sweeping claims are disputed not only by the Philippines but also by Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.

"China has always made itself loud and clear that it has indisputable sovereignty over the seas's islands and surrounding waters, which is part of China's core interests," Xinhua said. "That is based on unambiguous and undeniable historical facts."