Beijing has escalated its response to public remarks by Philippine maritime officials, with China’s foreign ministry issuing a sharp warning and accusing certain figures of deliberately misrepresenting Chinese actions in contested waters.
Speaking on Monday, Jan. 19, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said an individual described as a Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson had been spreading false narratives about China and deliberately damaging its reputation. He alleged that some uniformed personnel in the Philippines were motivated by personal political interests and were repeatedly making statements he described as extreme and baseless.
“These individuals, driven by personal political motives, have repeatedly made outrageous and absurd statements, in a habit of inciting confrontation behavior is despicable,” Guo said.
China, he added, has formally raised the issue through diplomatic channels. “China strongly condemns this and has lodged strong protests with the Philippine side,” he said.
Guo followed this with a pointed warning aimed at unnamed Philippine officials. “A word of advice to relevant individuals in the Philippines: immediately stop making provocations and stop confusing right and wrong, or they would pay the price for what they did,” he said.
The remarks mark the first time China’s foreign ministry has directly intervened in the ongoing exchange of statements between Philippine Coast Guard officials and the Chinese Embassy in Manila, which intensified toward the end of December.
That exchange was triggered by comments from West Philippine Sea spokesperson Jay Tarriela, who publicly criticized China’s offer of assistance to Filipino fishers, characterizing it as political messaging rather than genuine aid, and questioned the presence of Chinese forces in waters claimed by the Philippines.
