PH to continue using transparency policy vs. China’s gray-zone tactics

MANILA – National Security Adviser (NSA) Eduardo Año said the Philippines will continue using its transparency policy to counter China’s gray-zone activities in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

“At the heart of our national strategy lies the necessity of transparency to counter China’s gray zone activities,” Año said in a statement Sunday night, underscoring the central role of transparency in the country’s national strategy.

“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 said.

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 (NTF-WPS).

The NSA recognized that informing the Filipino people with verified facts is essential to overcoming fear, dispelling defeatist narratives, and strengthening national resolve.

Año emphasized that the country’s transparency policy is measured and principled, pushing back against accusations that it is 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. By embracing transparency, we are not escalating tensions; we are deescalating them through clarity and resolve,” he stressed.

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

“We have exposed Chinese maneuvers for what they truly are: Illegal, Coercive, Aggressive, and Deceptive (ICAD) actions. By systematically documenting and publicizing these incidents, we impose significant reputational costs on the aggressor, deterring further escalation and establishing credible below-the-threshold deterrence,” the NSA chief pointed out.

“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,” Año added.

He also emphasized that transparency 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,” he said.

— Priam Nepomuceno (PNA)