National Security Adviser Eduardo Año has denied a “gentleman’s agreement” existed between former President Rodrigo Duterte and the Chinese government regarding the BRP Sierra Madre, which serves as the country’s outpost on Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.

In an interview, Año said while the Chinese government talked of a gentleman’s agreement, it could not show that one “actually exists, not even a document, or identify somebody that said that, particularly on entering into that gentleman’s agreement.”

“There is no such thing,” he said.

His statement was contrary to the earlier statement of former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque, who said the Philippine government had entered into an informal agreement with China not to deliver construction materials for the repair of the Sierra Madre, which is rusting away.

To recall, Roque claimed the “gentleman’s agreement” was reached during Duterte’s term and revealed to the public by former Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano.

Roque said the agreement did not include towing away or removing the Sierra Madre from Ayungin Shoal.

Año said the country will continue to fight for its rights in the West Philippine Sea. He assured the public the military would protect the country’s territorial integrity and ensure its sovereignty in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.

China has lately referred to the purported agreement to shift the blame on the Philippines for the escalating tensions in the West Philippine Sea.

Originally known as the USS LST-821, the 100-meter BRP Sierra Madre was a tank landing ship in the US Navy during World War II.

Subsequently, the USS Harnett County was renamed and repurposed as a floating base in the Mekong Delta during the Vietnam War.

Under an informal understanding between the Philippines and the US, the vessel was transferred to the Philippine Navy after it transported thousands of Vietnamese refugees to the Philippines. It was designated as the BRP Sierra Madre.

Following years of active duty, the Sierra Madre was intentionally grounded on Ayungin Shoal in 1999 to counter Beijing’s expansion in the disputed waters.