MANILA – The Malacañang took a swipe at Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian after saying that some Filipino officials are “hyping up” the issue in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque clarified that Foreign Affairs secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. and Defense secretary Delfin Lorenzana were just stating a fact about the continuous presence of the Chinese vessels in the country’s territory.
“They are not hyping up the issue. They were just merely stating a fact when they said that there were lingering presence of the Chinese vessels in the Julian Felipe Reef,” Roque said on Thursday.
On April 13, Lijian appealed to “certain Philippine officials” to stop “hyping up the issue” and giving negative reactions to the situation that can affect the bilateral relations and peace and stability in the disputed territory.
Lijian said China is ready to resolve the ongoing territorial dispute “through friendly consultations.”
Lorenzana had repeatedly called China to withdraw its Chinese vessels around the Julian Felipe Reef.
On the other hand, Locsin filed two diplomatic protests against China on Wednesday due to the increasing number of Chinese ships at the reef.
Earlier this week, China’s ambassador Huang Xilian was summoned by the Department of Foreign Affairs regarding the continuous presence of the said vessels in the country’s territory./PN
