A Chinese diplomat has sparked fury in the Philippines by saying Beijing “may easily win” a conflict with the Southeast Asian nation.
Manila has denounced the comments as a “thinly veiled threat” as ties between the two countries have continued to deteriorate.
Speaking at a college forum in Quezon City on Thursday, Chinese ambassador Jing Quanv urged the Philippines to exercise caution over maritime disputes in the South China Sea and be grateful for the “peace-loving neighbour”. He insisted, however, that Beijing didn’t intend to use force to resolve any disputes in the region.
His remarks drew sharp reactions in the Philippines, with president Ferdinand Marcos Jr saying they sounded “very much like a threat”.
Mr Jing’s comments came in response to a question about Philippine defence chief Gilberto Teodoro labelling China a regional “troublemaker” amid escalating bilateral tensions.
Beijing and Manila have repeatedly clashed in the contested waters of the South China Sea, sometimes violently.
“We should feel fortunate enough that you have a neighbour like China in this region,” Mr Jing said at the forum.
“If we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not choose force, and we love peace.”
He accused Philippine authorities of targeting Chinese teachers and workers in the country, and conducting what he described as daily attacks on China's reputation. He then asked who the real troublemaker was.
The Philippine foreign ministry said Mr Jing’s comments were "a poor choice of words" and unhelpful given the complicated bilateral ties.
“It is regrettable that Chinese ambassador Jing Quan today had a poor choice of words that would seem to convey a thinly veiled threat of the use of force,” it said in a statement.
Mr Marcos said that he would like to talk to Mr Jing face to face to understand what the envoy meant when he said that China could easily win a military conflict against Manila.
"Well it sounds very much to me like a threat and it is not a very diplomatic statement to be made. So, we perhaps would like to understand what exactly it’s that he means," Mr Marcos said after attending the 125th founding anniversary of the Philippine coast guard.
Mr Marcos did not categorically say he would summon the ambassador but said the issue “deserves a discussion between the ambassador and myself”.
Philippine coast guard spokesman Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela, however, described it as a “direct threat”.
“No people feel fortunate when a larger neighbour repeatedly violates the law and then tells them to be thankful it was not worse,” he said on X. “Not using force against a country whose rights you are already violating is not peace. It is coercion by other means.”
The Chinese embassy in Manila said that Mr Jing’s comments were taken out of context. It said he had only “emphasised that China views the Philippines as a neighbour across the sea and a friend bound to China by deep historical and cultural ties”.
Beijing, it added, sought only “stable relations” with the neighbour.
The row over the envoy’s remarks erupted just a week after Chinese coast guard personnel used water cannons to obstruct the medical evacuation of a sailor from the grounded vessel BRP Sierra Madre.
The delay lasted nearly 10 hours, forcing the Philippine ship to leave the area to ensure crew safety, Mr Tarriela said.
In September, the Philippine military said it tracked 101 Chinese navy and coast guard vessels around the contested spots of Scarborough Shoal, Thitu Island, Second Thomas Shoal, and Sabina Shoal. This was nearly double the 56 recorded in August.
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