NSA: Transparency to counter Chinese gray zone tactics

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines will continue using its transparency policy as a cornerstone strategy for countering China’s gray zone activities in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said.

“At the heart of our national strategy lies the necessity of transparency to counter China’s gray zone activities,” Año said.

“By uniting in this way, we safeguard not just our sovereign rights but the sustainability of the seas that sustain millions across Southeast Asia,” he added.

The transparency policy was first advanced by Año in 2023 when he assumed the chairmanship of the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea.

The NSA recognizes that informing Filipinos with verified facts is essential to overcoming fear, dispelling defeatist narratives, and strengthening national resolve.

He emphasized that the country’s transparency policy is measured and principled, as he pushed back against accusations that it’s provocative

“Let me be clear: transparency is not provocation. It is a principled and necessary approach to asserting our sovereign rights without resorting to aggression,” Año said.

“By embracing transparency, we are not escalating tensions; we are deescalating them through clarity and resolve,” he stressed.

Since 2023, the transparency policy has since evolved into a sustained national doctrine anchored on discipline, credibility, and adherence to international law, he said.

“We have exposed Chinese maneuvers for what they truly are: illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive actions,” Año said. “By systematically documenting and publicizing these incidents, we im pose significant reputational costs on the aggressor, deterring further escalation and establishing credible below-the threshold deterrence.”

He stressed the importance of countering disinformation. “By releasing verified footage, eyewitness accounts, and factual reports from the frontlines, we directly debunk these falsehoods in real-time, validating our position and exposing the manipulative intent behind them,” he added.

Transparency, he said, has reshaped the global understanding of the issue.

“Transparency has helped reframe the WPS not as an isolated bilateral dispute but as a broader challenge to international norms and the rules-based order, in which all countries have a stake,” Año said.