During a forum in South Korea, Filipino Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. publicly criticized the Chinese Communist Party for not understanding “decency” in a note and demanded that they should be “ashamed.” This led to a renewed verbal clash between the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines on Wednesday.
Spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines, Assistant Minister Analyn Ratonel, stated during a press conference at Malacañang Palace, “We respect Secretary Teodoro’s statement and viewpoint. Apart from that, I do not wish to make further comments.”
On the other hand, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning rebuked the Filipino officials during a routine press conference, accusing them of “putting on a show and lying” and urging relevant Philippine personnel to cease such behavior.
During the Seoul Defense Dialogue (SDD) on Tuesday, Secretary Teodoro received a handwritten note while answering questions on the forum stage. The note, delivered by a Chinese military attaché through staff of the Chinese Embassy in Seoul, reiterated Beijing’s stance on the South China Sea arbitration case, criticizing the arbitration process for violating basic principles of international law and deeming the 2016 ruling as “illegal, null, and void.”
Teodoro promptly read out the contents of the note and retaliated on the spot. He pointed out that the arbitration was conducted in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and China’s claim of the arbitration being unlawful is akin to admitting that they violated international law when they signed the convention. He bluntly stated, “China (CCP) neither accepts nor recognizes the ruling. Of course, because you lost.”
He criticized the Chinese practice of passing notes while others are speaking as highly disrespectful, lacking in basic decency, and showing disrespect to the host country South Korea, the forum organizers, and the audience present, essentially being “coercive, bullying, and aggressive.” Teodoro ended his remarks in Filipino by emphasizing, “You should at least have a little decency and shame (Mahiya naman kayo nang konti).” He mentioned that he would keep the note as a memento of how “desperate China (CCP) is.”
Jay Tarriela, the spokesperson for the Philippine Coast Guard in the Western Philippines Sea, also voiced support on social media platform X, stating that the incident reveals that even in international security forums, China cannot hide its “bullying and barbaric behavior,” and urged the international community to collectively condemn China’s “barbarism and imperial ambitions.”
This verbal clash comes amid escalating tensions in the disputed waters of the South China Sea. Confrontations and conflicts between coast guards and naval vessels of both sides have been frequent, including instances of Chinese vessels firing water cannons at Filipino ships, raising concerns about the escalation of the situation. Additionally, Beijing announced sanctions against Teodoro in June this year, citing his remarks as detrimental to Chinese interests.
In response, Teodoro expressed his indifference to the Chinese sanctions at the time, emphasizing that these sanctions would not deter him from continuing to defend Philippine sovereignty and national interests.
Beijing claims sovereignty over nearly the entire South China Sea. In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled against Beijing’s claims based on the “nine-dash line” in favor of the Philippines, citing violations of international law under the UNCLOS.
However, Beijing has consistently refused to acknowledge the arbitration ruling and has continued to assert sovereignty over large swaths of maritime areas, leading to multiple conflicts between Chinese and Philippine vessels within the Philippine Exclusive Economic Zone.
(This article referenced reports from ABS-CBN and South China Morning Post)