Metro Manila, Philippines – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. wants to reset the Philippines’ relationship with China and prevent past tensions from recurring, Malacañang said Thursday, July 23, after his meeting with Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said Marcos and Jing met for about one hour and 20 minutes on Tuesday to discuss bilateral relations.
“Actually, tumagal ang meeting ng isang oras at bente minutos. Yes, nag-usap sila, at ang nais na mangyari dito ng Pangulo ay hindi na maulit ang mga pangyayari at ma-reset sana ang relasyon ng China at ng Pilipinas sa mas magandang pakikipag-ugnayan,” Castro said.
[Translation: The meeting lasted about one hour and 20 minutes. Yes, they talked, and what the President wants is to ensure that those incidents do not happen again and that the relationship between China and the Philippines is reset toward better engagement,” Castro said.]
Castro, however, said the government could not confirm the existence of Jing’s claim that the Philippines violated a July 2024 arrangement between Manila and Beijing,
“Hindi ko masasabi kung mayroon dahil hindi kailangan sa kaniya manggaling muna kung anong arrangement iyong sinasabi niya. Kasi ang huli nating nabanggit, ang huli nating nadinig ay ang secret deal pero hindi iyon sa panahon ni Pangulong Marcos Jr. … Hindi iyon deal with President Marcos,” she said.
[Translation: I cannot say whether such an arrangement exists because we first need to know exactly what arrangement he is referring to. The last thing we heard was the so-called secret deal, but that was not during President Marcos’ term. That was not an agreement made under President Marcos]
She said Malacañang has asked for a copy of the alleged agreement before making any conclusions.
“That’s why sinasabi nga po natin, kunin ninyo po sa kaniya kung mayroong written agreement. Hindi po natin masasabi kung mayroon eh. Hindi sa atin nanggaling iyong statement na iyon,” the palace official noted.
[Translation: That’s why we’re saying, ask him if there is a written agreement. We cannot say whether one exists because that statement did not come from us,” she said.]
Castro said Marcos and Jing had a productive exchange but agreed not to disclose the details of their discussions.
“Nagkaroon po sila ng exchanges ng views at mga suggestions. Pero kung anuman po iyong napag-usapan nila in detail ay hindi ko po maibabanggit sa inyo.”
[Translation: They exchanged views and suggestions. But whatever they discussed in detail, I cannot share with you]
