MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said he will be talking to Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian "soon" to discuss what the envoy meant in his widely-quoted — and generally panned — remarks last week, which many viewed as a threat to overseas Filipino workers in Taiwan.
The chief executive said all the fuss might have been caused by a translation problem, noting that English is not the ambassador's first language.
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"I’ll be talking to the ambassador soon and I’m sure he will be very anxious to give his own interpretation of what he was trying to say… we were all a little surprised, but I just put it down to difference in language," Marcos Jr. told the press on the sidelines of a housing event.
He did not give further details on the date of the meeting or if it was the Palace that proposed the meeting. In February, Marcos Jr. summoned Huang "to express his serious concern" over incidents in the West Philippine Sea.
Misquoted?
China has opposed the enhanced security alliance between the Philipines and the United States. Washington will now have access to nine military bases after Marcos Jr. approved the designation of new sites in Cagayan, Isabela, and Palawan.
In a transcript provided by the Chinese Embassy itself, Huang in his speech last week claimed "the US intends to take advantage of the new EDCA sites to interfere in the situation across the Taiwan Strait to serve its geopolitical goals, and advance its anti-China agenda at the expense of peace and development of the Philippines and the region at large."
The safety and welfare of the Filipino migrant workers deployed in Taiwan was also mentioned. In Huang’s own words:
Some tried to find excuse for the new EDCA sites by citing the safety of the 150,000 OFWs in Taiwan, while China is the last country that wishes to see conflict over the Strait because people on both sides are Chinese. But we will not renounce the use of force, and we reserve the option of taking all necessary measures. This is to guard against external interference and all separatist activities. The Philippines is advised to unequivocally oppose “Taiwan independence” rather than stoking the fire by offering the US access to the military bases near the Taiwan Strait if you care genuinely about the 150,000 OFWs.
"I’m very interested to know what it is that he meant — I interpret it as him trying to say that ‘You should not, [the] Philippines [should not] provoke or intensify the tensions because it will impact badly on the Filipinos," Marcos Jr. said.
Huang was in hot waters over his statement, with Sen. Risa Hontiveros even urging the Palace to ask China to recall its ambassador. The embassy later claimed Huang was misquoted.
The Department of National Defense and the National Security Council have since clarified that the enhancement of the country’s defense ties with the US will be for the Philippines and the country will not allow other nations to drag Manila into their mess.
The Department of Foreign Affairs, on the other hand, said contingencies are already in place for OFWs in Taiwan.
Although agencies like the NSC and even the Office of the Presidential Adviser Peace, Reconciliation and Unity have commented on Huang's statements, the Palace had been mum so far.