MANILA, Philippines — Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan welcomed the prospect of face-to-face talks with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Chinese Embassy in Manila said on Friday, after the president said he would summon the envoy over his remarks on the use of force.
“We welcome such good opportunity of face to face communication. Ambassador Jing looks forward to exchanging views on certain important and sensitive issues with the President,” the embassy said in a statement.
“Especially how to prevent some individuals from pushing bilateral relations into a dangerous situation,” it added.
The embassy did not announce a date for the meeting.
READ: Marcos to summon Chinese envoy over threatening-remarks
Marcos said earlier Friday that he wanted to discuss Jing’s remarks with the ambassador, describing them as threatening and undiplomatic.
“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 is that he means,” the President told reporters.
Pressed on whether he would summon Jing, Marcos said: “I think that deserves a discussion between Ambassador and myself.”
Jing on Thursday said China could easily win using force against the Philippines but would not do so.
“If we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not use force. You know, we love peace,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the second Diliman Dialogues organized by the Philippines-China Studies Center of Diliman College in Quezon City.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) rebuked the ambassador Thursday night, saying his choice of words appeared to convey a “thinly veiled threat of the use of force.”
It urged diplomats accredited to the Philippines to exercise greater care in public statements to avoid further eroding trust and derailing constructive engagement.
The embassy rejected that assessment Friday, accusing the DFA of “selective quotation and overinterpretation.” It also urged the department to play a “more responsible role” in preventing attempts by unnamed individuals to undermine bilateral exchanges and cooperation.
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. separately said Friday that Jing’s statements were a threat meant to intimidate the Philippines, not a slip of the tongue.
Teodoro said defense officials were studying the remarks but would leave diplomatic action to the DFA and the President.
Jing had also warned Thursday that Manila faced greater risks of confrontation if it did not restore direct military communications with Beijing.
Teodoro has defended the suspension of those channels, citing Beijing’s abuse of the communications and distortion of narratives. He said communication remained open through the DFA and the Philippine Coast Guard.
The diplomatic exchange comes amid tensions in the West Philippine Sea, where Manila has accused Chinese forces of increasingly aggressive actions against Philippine government and fishing vessels. /mr
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