Camille Naredo

Philippines' Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro Jr delivers a speech as he attends the sixth plenary session of the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue summit in Singapore on May 31, 2026.Jam Sta. Rosa, AFP/File

Philippines' Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro Jr delivers a speech as he attends the sixth plenary session of the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue summit in Singapore on May 31, 2026. (Photo by JAM STA ROSA / AFP)

Article (news)

Shangri-La Dialogue

Katrina Domingo

ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA — There is &quot;no rift&quot; between the Philippines and China despite a heated exchange of statements between Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Chinese officials over the West Philippine Sea, Malacañang said on Monday.</p><p>The Philippines maintains that it has &quot;good relations&quot; with China, Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said after Chinese officials admonished Teodoro anew for calling out Beijing&#x27;s &quot;duplicity&quot; over its refusal to recognize a 10-year old international arbitral ruling that upheld the Philippines&#x27; rights in the South China Sea.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/6/12/defense-chief-teodoro-says-to-keep-doing-my-duty-after-china-sanctions-0813">READ: Defense chief Teodoro says to &#x27;keep doing my duty&#x27; after China sanctions</a></div><p>&quot;Ang bansang China ay tumutupad sa kanilang batas at polisiya, ganoon din ang bansang Pilipinas. Si Sec. Gibo ay tumutupad lang sa kaniyang mandato bilang opisyal ng Pilipinas,&quot; Castro said in a Palace briefing.</p><p>&quot;Sa parte ng Pilipinas, itinuturing pa rin na maganda ang relasyon sa bansa ng China,&quot; she said.</p><p>&quot;Hindi naman nagkakaroon ng rift o sigalot dahil sa mga mensahe ng ating Defense Secretary,&quot; she said.</p><p>Teodoro — who has been speaking against Chinese aggression within the Philippines&#x27; exclusive economic zone in international fora — was earlier barred from entering Chinese territory and from engaging in &quot;any transaction, cooperation or other activities&quot; Chinese citizens and organizations for allegedly making &quot;irresponsible remarks on China, which undermines China&#x27;s legitimate interests and sabotages China-Philippines relations.&quot;</p><p>The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) described the blacklisting of Teodoro as an &quot;unfriendly act,&quot; while the Defense Secretary said that he has no plans to visit China, and that he would continue to uphold his mandate of pushing for the sovereignty of the Philippines in its own waters.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/6/3/teodoro-shrugs-off-reported-china-entry-ban-says-he-has-no-assets-there-1740">READ: Teodoro shrugs off reported China entry ban, says he has no assets there</a></div><p>&quot;Ang pangulo po ang direktiba… Dapat daanin sa diplomatikong pamamaraan,&quot; Castro said.</p><p>&quot;We can protect our rights, we can protect our interests in a diplomatic manner,&quot; she said.</p><p>The Philippines — this year&#x27;s chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations — is pushing to finalize a Code of Conduct in the South China Sea this year to create a framework that would guide how claimant countries should settle disputes over the strategic waterway.</p><p>For decades, bottlenecks in the COC discussion include whether or not to make it a legally-binding framework.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/6/28/dnd-china-s-reply-to-dfa-statement-on-arbitral-award-a-window-to-true-intentions-0931">READ: China&#x27;s reply to DFA statement on arbitral award a &#x27;window to true intentions&#x27; -- DND</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="960" height="540" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wnnQ5jNGiVg?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>There is "no rift" between the Philippines and China despite a heated exchange of statements between Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Chinese officials over the West Philippine Sea, Malacañang said on Monday.</p>

There is "no rift" between the Philippines and China despite a heated exchange of statements between Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Chinese officials over the West Philippine Sea, Malacañang said on Monday.

'No rift' between PH, China despite Beijing's sanctions, rhetoric vs Teodoro: Palace

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'No rift' between PH, China despite Beijing's sanctions, rhetoric vs Teodoro: Palace

Katrina Domingo,

ABS-CBN News

Published June 29, 2026 03:33 PM PHT

Read More:

China

Gilberto Teodoro

Gibo Teodoro

diplomacy

West Philippine Sea

maritime conflict

Department of National Defense

Chinese embassy

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