China cannot dictate to the Philippines what to do, Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel "Babe" Romualdez said amid the worsening rift between the Asian neighbors. 

Beijing had issued a statement warning the Philippines to "act with caution" regarding its decisions in the disputed West Philippine Sea, or WPS.

Romualdez, in a television interview, refuted China's claim that Manila and Washington were working together to increase WPS tensions.

The top diplomat indicated that Beijing was the one that initiated aggressive actions in the region.

Romualdez cited the recent conversation between Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

"Any kind of communication is better than none," he said.

Manalo and Wang had agreed to hold a dialogue under the Bilateral Consultation Mechanism, or BCM, on the WPS as soon as possible.

Wang, who sits on the powerful Politburo of the Communist Party of China, and Manolo, in a phone call, discussed the prospect of a meeting under the BCM, the Chinese foreign ministry said.

The phone conversation was held "at the request of the Philippines," the ministry said.

Relations face difficulty

"Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that China-Philippines relations face serious difficulty and the root cause lies in the Philippines' change of policy and position, refusing to honor its commitment and repeated provocations that undermine China's legitimate and lawful rights and interests," Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.

"We hope that the Philippines will decide rationally, follow the effective way for neighbors to get along with each other, and work with China to properly handle and manage the situation at sea," he added.

During the phone call, "the two sides agreed on a meeting under the bilateral consultation mechanism on the South China Sea issue at an early date."

In 2017, the consultation mechanism was established to promote bilateral discussion and cooperation between China and the Philippines.

Seven meetings have occurred since then under the BCM, the last one occurring in Manila last March.

In reporting about the call, Chinese state media said that Wang Yi asserted that the Philippines had downgraded itself to a proxy of the United States. Tensions have been rising between Manila and Beijing over two atolls in the South China Sea — the Second Thomas (Ayungin) Shoal and Scarborough Shoal — which both countries claim.

Regarding the phone call, Manalo said, "We had a frank and candid exchange and ended our call with a closer understanding of our respective positions on a number of issues."