PH, China still talking on energy, but no compromises on Ayungin

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. engaged in a dialogue with members of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) at the Diamond Hotel Manila, where they discussed important issues affecting the country, the region, and the world on August 14, 2026. (Courtesy: Presidential Communications Office)

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday said the Philippines was “making progress” on potential energy exploration projects with China even as he defended his government’s policy on resupply missions to the military outpost near Ayungin Shoal, saying it does not compromise the country’s sovereignty or maritime rights to Beijing.

The President made these statements during a luncheon with the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) amid ongoing tensions over Manila and Beijing’s competing claims in the disputed South China Sea (SCS) and the recent treatment of Filipinos in China.

Against this backdrop, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela warned that the possible Chinese militarization of Bajo de Masinloc, also known as Panatag Shoal or Scarborough Shoal, could have consequences beyond the Philippines, particularly for global trade and freedom of navigation.

Tarriela described Bajo de Masinloc as the last “unfinished vertex” of what he called China’s “iron triangle,” referring to the Paracel Islands and China’s military-armed outposts in the Spratly Islands.

“The Paracels were seized in 1974. Seven reefs in the Spratlys have been dredged into military-armed island fortresses. Only Scarborough remains,” Tarriela said.

‘Standard practice, not special agreement’

Mr. Marcos was asked whether the understanding with Beijing on resupply missions should remain in place, be revised or terminated amid divisions within his administration over the policy.

The reported provisional understanding was reached to help manage Philippine resupply missions to the BRP Sierra Madre, the grounded Philippine Navy vessel that serves as a military outpost at Ayungin Shoal, also known internationally as Second Thomas Shoal.

The President rejected the characterization of the policy as a “special agreement” with China, saying Philippine vessels simply follow standard maritime procedures by issuing a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) before conducting movements in the West Philippine Sea.

“We’re just conducting ourselves according to the standard practice of the vessels sailing in the West Philippine Sea, and for that matter, in other seas,” Mr. Marcos said.

He said the notice informs other vessels in the area about Philippine maritime movements, including where a vessel will sail, when it will arrive and how long it will remain.

“These arrangements that we make are to prevent any kind of miscalculation or mistake that might lead to even greater tension and hopefully not a conflict,” the chief executive said.

The issue has drawn renewed attention on the 10th anniversary of the 2016 South China Sea arbitral ruling, which upheld key Philippine maritime claims against China’s expansive claims in the disputed waters.

Mr. Marcos also rejected suggestions that the arrangement could weaken Philippine claims or sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea.

“It does not weaken our position in any way,” Mr. Marcos said, adding that the Philippines’ rights remain anchored in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2016 arbitral award.

The President said Philippine vessels would continue to issue the required maritime notices whenever they conduct resupply missions, patrols or other operations.

“Our ships are going, our vessels will sail, they will resupply, or they will patrol,” Mr. Marcos said. “Anytime that they will sail, that NOTAM is issued. That’s the extent.”

SCS energy exploration talks ongoing

Despite the continuing tensions, Mr. Marcos said the Philippines was advancing discussions with China on potential energy exploration in the South China Sea.

Since the outbreak of war in the Middle East, prices at the pump have soared in the import-dependent archipelago, driving inflation and depressing growth to its lowest levels in years.

Marcos, who declared a national energy emergency in March, said the situation had given new urgency to ongoing talks.

“The Philippines needs additional supplies of oil and gas. We need to explore the possibilities that we have,” he told FOCAP.

“In the Philippines, in the West Philippine Sea, and wherever else, we can make a joint (deal),” he said, using Manila’s name for areas of the South China Sea.

The Philippines terminated talks with China for a joint energy project in the South China Sea after President Rodrigo Duterte ordered an end to negotiations in 2022.

Mr. Marcos reopened the door to discussions in 2023 following a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Manila’s foreign ministry announced in March that “initial exchanges on potential oil and gas cooperation” had begun.

Pressed on whether a deal would be possible before the end of his term in two years, Mr. Marcos said “certainly.”

“We wouldn’t be having these discussions if it was not with a view to actually… having such a joint operation,” he said.

“I think the sense I get is that all parties involved want it to succeed. And that’s always a very good sign.”

‘Countermeasure’ against defense chief Teodoro

A Chinese-language newspaper based in Manila, meanwhile, reported that China’s actions against the Filipinos—including possibly those in Hong Kong and Macau—were a countermeasure against Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. following Philippine law enforcement operations involving Chinese nationals.

The report linked the dispute to a May 2026 operation at Philippine Sanjia Steel Corp. in Misamis Oriental, where 69 Chinese workers were found handling harmful or hazardous materials.

Teodoro condemned Beijing’s reported action against the Filipinos, describing it as “plain and simple extortion and blackmail.”

He also rejected comparisons between the Filipinos subjected to immigration action in China and Chinese nationals arrested in the Philippines.

Beijing claims most of the South China Sea despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis, and its coast guard has clashed repeatedly with that of the Philippines, sparking fears of an armed conflict.

The Philippines and China summoned each other’s ambassadors last month following a clash at a shoal in the crucial waterway, which sparked condemnation of Beijing by Manila’s allies. 

— Charles Dantes & Rex Espiritu with Agence France Presse