President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his government on Friday (October 16, 2026) protested remarks by China’s ambassador to Manila, calling them “a thinly veiled threat of the use of force” in the latest flare up in the two Asian countries’ longstanding territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
“If we want to use force, we may easily win. “In this region, we enjoy peace. Look at other regions: Ukraine, Gaza and even Venezuela. When asked to comment on the Chinese ambassador’s statement, Mr. He added that he would like to understand what Jing exactly meant.
On the sidelines of a Manila forum on Thursday (October 15, 2026), Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan was asked by reporters to comment on Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr.’s remarks pointing to China as a “troublemaker” in the region. Jing said that characterisation was “nonsense” and added the Philippines should feel fortunate to have China as a neighbour. But no, we will not choose force and we love peace,” Jing said. Marcos said it sounded “very much to me like a threat and it is not a very diplomatic statement to be made. The Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said in a separate statement that it was “regrettable” that Jing “had a poor choice of words that would seem to convey a thinly veiled threat of the use of force which is hardly helpful in the context of the complicated bilateral ties between the Philippines and China. “It is hoped that all diplomats accredited to the Philippines take greater care in the language used in public statements so as not to further erode mutual trust and confidence, nor derail the advancement of dialogue and constructive engagement,” it said. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Beijing’s position on the bilateral relationship “is clear,” adding that “we hope the Philippine side can understand it comprehensively and accurately. In June, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing announced that Teodoro and his family were banned from entering China, including Hong Kong and Macao, over what it described as “irresponsible remarks” he had made that undermined Beijing’s interests.
