The Philippines has once again rejected a call from Chinese state media, demanding the country return the Mid-range Capability Missile System or Typhon launcher to the United States (US).

In a message to reporters on Thursday, National Security Council (NSC) spokesperson, Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya, insisted that the Philippines has the “sovereign and inherent right to upgrade its defense capabilities in opportunities it deems appropriate.”

Malaya stressed the Typhon missile system “is deployed only for defense purposes and will only be used in this manner.”

“We refute the assertion that the Typhon missile system will endanger the region. We strictly adhere to the provisions of the Constitution that the Philippines can neither employ the use of nuclear weapons nor engage in offensive war,” he added.

China has been demanding the removal of the MRC, insisting that the deployment of the military asset in the Philippines “induces an arms race and provokes instability in the Indo-Pacific region.”

With this, the NSC criticized China for targeting the country’s efforts to “dramatically improve offensive capabilities.”

“It is in the same spirit that we have not commented previously on China’s ever-rising missile inventory, which is the actual threat to regional stability,” Malaya said.