Envoy's remarks at a forum

Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan was asked by reporters at a forum in the Philippines on Thursday, 15 October, to respond to Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., who had described China as a regional "troublemaker". Jing called that characterization nonsense and said the Philippines should feel fortunate to have China as a neighbor. He then said China could win a military clash while insisting it would not choose force.

“If we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not choose force and we love peace.”

Jing also accused Manila of targeting Chinese teachers and workers and of carrying out daily attacks on China's reputation, although one report noted he gave no concrete example. He then asked who the real troublemaker was.

Manila protests the remarks

On Friday, 16 October, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the remarks sounded like a threat and were not very diplomatic, and he wanted to understand what the envoy meant. He made the comments after attending the 125th founding anniversary of the Philippine coast guard. Bloomberg reported that he may summon the ambassador, while another report said he had not categorically committed to a summons and that the matter deserved a discussion between the ambassador and himself.

“Well it sounds very much to me like a threat and it is not a very diplomatic statement to be made.”

The Department of Foreign Affairs called Jing's choice of words regrettable and said they seemed to convey a thinly veiled threat of the use of force. It asked diplomats to take more care in public statements so as not to erode trust further. Coast guard spokesman Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela described the remarks as a direct threat. Teodoro rejected the idea that the words were a slip of speech and said they amounted to intimidation. He also suspected China of preparing the ground to blame the Philippines for any future escalation, and he defended suspending direct military contacts, which he said had yielded no benefit to Manila in about three years.

Beijing's response

The Chinese Embassy confirmed Jing's statements but said the foreign ministry had selectively quoted and overinterpreted them. It urged Manila to play a more responsible role in preventing such actions.

“China-Philippines relations are currently at an extremely sensitive stage.”

One report said the embassy also accused Tarriela of taking the remarks out of context and of trying to damage bilateral ties, while stating that China wanted stable relations. On Friday, Chinese defense ministry spokesman Chen Xi announced decisive and effective measures against what he called disruptive actions in the South China Sea, according to Xinhua. He accused the Philippine government of endangering regional stability with the support of outside powers but did not say what further steps Beijing planned. He referred to recent incidents near Scarborough Shoal and Second Thomas Shoal, which China calls Huangyan Dao and Ren'ai Jiao.

A question and answer item published by China's defense ministry referred to more than 100 Chinese navy and coast guard ships that Philippine forces had observed in September near Thitu Island and Sabina Shoal.

Earlier clashes at sea

Chinese and Philippine vessels have clashed regularly in the disputed waters, some incidents involving collisions and injuries. Confrontations resumed in July after a brief lull. In early October, Manila accused China of blocking the medical evacuation of a Filipino soldier near a disputed islet. The South China Morning Post reported mutual accusations over a medical evacuation near Second Thomas Shoal, where the Philippines keeps an outpost on a grounded naval ship. China claims virtually the entire waterway, a key global trade route, while rejecting a 2016 international arbitration ruling that found its claims had no legal basis. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan all have separate claims to the waters.