Gibo rejects China's claims of unfair treatment at ASEAN defense talks

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Cebu — Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. on Thursday rejected China's accusations that the Philippines abused its chairmanship of the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) to obstruct Beijing's participation, saying the claims did not reflect the position of ASEAN member states.

Teodoro's remarks came after Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Senior Col. Zhang Xiaogang accused the Philippines of violating diplomatic protocols and undermining China's rights as a dialogue partner in the regional defense mechanism.

Zhang also accused an unnamed Filipino politician of acting in a self-serving manner.

“As the rotating chair of this year's ADMM-Plus, the Philippine side has allowed a certain self-serving politician to act recklessly and abuse its chairmanship to put up obstacles to China’s participation,” Zhang said.

He argued that the alleged actions violated ASEAN's consensus-based decision-making process and contradicted the ADMM-Plus' principles of openness and inclusivity.

“They do not conform to basic diplomatic protocols, and undermine China's legitimate rights as a member of the mechanism,” Zhang said.

Zhang also claimed that several ASEAN countries had questioned and opposed the Philippines' handling of China's participation.

Teodoro dismissed the assertion, stressing that Beijing's statements represented China's position rather than that of ASEAN.

“Insofar as ASEAN is concerned, I do not believe our ASEAN member countries feel that way. If not, they would have let me know,” Teodoro said during a press conference following the defense meetings.

“Anyway, they were given an opportunity to articulate their position, which is not any different from what they have been articulating before,” he added.

The defense chief emphasized that ASEAN member states, not external dialogue partners, determine the bloc's procedures and how participating countries are heard.

“They are dialogue partners,” Teodoro said, stressing that their participation remains subject to ASEAN's rules and limitations.

“So as much as we would want to accommodate them, it is subject to rules and limitations. [H]ow they are going to be heard is for ASEAN proper to determine and not anybody else.”

Asked what position China presented during the meeting, Teodoro declined to provide specifics but confirmed that Beijing's representative had been allowed to speak.

”I will just say this. They were able to state their position on the security situation regionally and internationally. It's not any different from what you hear their ministries saying.”

He also declined to characterize the reactions of other defense ministers but said he was “quite happy and satisfied” with the proceedings.

'More than courteous'

The diplomatic exchange followed China's decision to send Senior Capt. Yang Lei, its defense attaché to the Philippines, instead of its defense minister to the ADMM-Plus gathering.

According to Chinese state media, Yang was the lowest-ranking representative Beijing had sent to the meeting to date.

Unlike other arriving defense ministers, who were personally welcomed by Teodoro at the Mactan Expo Center, Yang was received by Defense Undersecretary Ignacio Madriaga.

“I think an undersecretary receiving an attaché is more than courteous,” he said.

The Philippines chaired this year's ADMM and ADMM-Plus meetings, which brought together ASEAN defense officials and representatives from eight dialogue partners, including China and the United States.