By Dean Aubrey Caratiquet
Malacañang reiterated President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s stance on championing diplomacy in settling differences with foreign nations when asked about the administration’s position on the recent pronouncements of Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan.
In an interview on the sidelines of a forum last week, Ambassador Quan said, “If we want to use force, we may easily win. But no, we will not choose force and we love peace.”
These remarks immediately drew the attention of lawmakers, who reacted by calling for the declaration of the Chinese official as a persona non grata.
However, in Monday’s briefing, Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro urged Filipinos to remember that the President remains focused on not backing down in the face of China’s provocations.
She went on to enumerate the three key priorities of President Marcos Jr., which includes diplomacy, protection of self-interests, and pursuit of accountability on alleged China-funded Philippine enterprises that were unearthed in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.
“Kung tayo man ay nagkakaiba-iba ng opinyon sa ibang bagay, ito po ay katanggap-tanggap. Pero kung ito ay tungkol sa ating karapatan bilang Pilipino at karapatan natin sa ating teritoryo at interes sa West Philippine Sea, tayo dapat ay magkaisa.”
Usec. Castro, meanwhile, said that the Chief Executive does not want the heated exchanges between Chinese and Philippine officials to escalate into the declaration of persona non grata on any foreign representative in the Philippines, noting that resorting to this extreme measure would prove detrimental to the diplomatic ties between Manila and Beijing.
She also declined to further comment on where the Philippines draws the line between being diplomatic and a pushover in the eyes of the international community.
When asked about how the administration views the status of relations between the two countries, she deferred these inquiries to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
The Malacañang official concluded, “Nananatiling maayos sa mata ng Pangulo, sa mata ng administrasyon, at kung meron mang mga isyung ganito, hayaan natin po ang DFA na tumugon kung ano ang dapat na hakbang para mas maging maayos pa ang pakikipag-usap sa bansang China.”
-bjlc
