President Marcos does not want a repeat of the recent Ayungin Shoal incident, where a Philippine Navy personnel was injured, expressing a desire for the Philippines and China to reset their bilateral relationship.

Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro disclosed on Thursday, July 23, that the meeting between the President and Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan on Tuesday afternoon lasted for more than an hour.

During the meeting, President Marcos said he does not want the incident to happen again and expressed hope that it would mark a reset in bilateral cooperation between the Philippines and China.

"Actually, tumagal ang meeting ng isang oras at bente minutos. Yes, at  nag-usap sila at ang nais na mangyari dito ng Pangulo ay hindi na maulit ang mga pangyayari at ma-reset sana ang relasyon ng China at ng Pilipinas sa mas magandang pakikipag-ugnayan (Actually, the meeting lasted for one hour and 20 minutes. Yes, and they talked, and what the President wants is for these incidents not to happen again and for the relationship between China and the Philippines to be reset toward better cooperation and stronger bilateral ties)," Castro said in a Palace briefing.

By a reset on the ties, Castro said the President meant that whatever issues exist between China and the Philippines, he wants to reset the dialogue on those matters.

"Nadinig din siya—nadinig din ang Pangulo ng ambassador ng China, so with that, sana magkaroon ng mas magandang resulta (The Chinese ambassador heard the President's message, and the President also heard the ambassador. With that, we hope for a better outcome)," Castro said.

The Palace spokesperson said the two officials exchanged views and suggestions during the meeting, but she did not divulge the details of what they discussed.

According to Castro, the meeting finished on a positive note, saying that the President welcomed the Chinese Ambassador warmly before they held a private meeting.

After the meeting, the ambassador came out of the room smiling, she added.

"I guess so, kasi pagkatapos at lumabas si Ambassador, nakangiti naman si Ambassador, nakangiti din naman sa amin at pagkakita namin sa Pangulo kasama si ES Ralph Recto, nakita naman natin na positibo (because after the meeting, when the ambassador came out, he was smiling and when we saw the President and Executive, they also appeared positive)," Castro said.

"Sa nakita kong mukha ng Pangulo ay positibo naman na naipaabot din niya sa bansang China kung ano iyong nais ng bansang Pilipinas (From what I saw, the President appeared positive that he had successfully conveyed to China what the Philippines wants)," she added.

Despite the continued objection of China over the Philippines' 201 arbitral award in the West Philippine Sea and the recent aggressions at sea, the Philippine Government remains in "good faith" when dealing with China.

"We are always in good faith, we should always act in good faith, we should always have in mind that we are dealing with people who will also be in good faith," Castro said.

She underscored that it is difficult to negotiate with another party if you immediately assume they are not trustworthy.

"Mahirap makipag-deal kapag ang kausap mo iniisip mo kaagad, magsisinungaling. So, dapat nating isipin, nakikipag-usap tayo, nakikipag-negotiate tayo na iyong taong kausap natin ay also in good faith (It's difficult to negotiate if you immediately assume that the person you're dealing with is going to lie. We should approach these discussions and negotiations believing that the other party is also acting in good faith)," she said when asked if the country remains optimistic and faithful that China will still comply with its assertions or deals with the Philippines, considering that Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro repeatedly said in public that China is not trustworthy.

The Palace official stressed that whatever the Defense chief's opinion may be, "that is his own view, and it is likely based on the facts available to him."

However, it does not mean that when the President meets with a representative of China, he assumes from the outset that the representative is lying, Castro added.

"Bakit pa tayo makikipag-usap at makikipag-negotiate kung iisipin naman natin na sila rin ay nagsisinungaling. So, may mga pagkakataon na maaari nating sabihin na hindi sila nagsasabi ng totoo, hindi totoo ang kanilang mga kini-claim. Pero hindi ibig sabihin na kapag makikipag-negotiate tayo at makikipag-usap tayo, hindi tayo maniniwala sa kanila (Why would we engage in talks or negotiations if we already believed the other side was lying? There may be times when we can say that they are not telling the truth or that their claims are inaccurate. But that does not mean that, when we negotiate and hold discussions, we should refuse to believe anything they say from the start)," Castro explained.

Asked if the Palace would call the attention of Teodoro, Castro said they would not be taking such action.

"Wala, hindi iko-callout ang Secretary ng Defense. Alam ng Pangulo  kung ano rin ang ginagawa ng ating Secretary Gibo Teodoro at iyon naman din ay naaayon sa kanyang mandato (No, the Secretary of Defense will not be called out. The President knows what Secretary Gibo Teodoro is doing and it is in line with his mandate)," Castro said.

The Palace mouthpiece emphasized that the statements of the Defense Secretary are only natural, but it does not necessarily be followed by a similar action from the President when dealing with China's representative.

Teodoro remarks over China's claims and the Chief Executive's role in dealing with China "should not be treated the same," Castro underscored.

"First, noong sinabi nila na kanila daw itong area na ito, which is opposite to the arbitral ruling. Ano ang magiging reaksyon ni Secretary Gibo? Siyempre iba (First, when they claimed that this area belongs to them, that is contrary to the arbitral ruling. What would Defense Secretary Gibo's reaction be? Naturally, it would be different)," Castro said.

"Pero once the President talks to the representative of another country, hindi puwedeng sabihin natin, hindi ako makikipag-usap sa iyo, sinungaling ka. So, magkaiba iyong sitwasyon, hindi natin puwedeng pagsamahin, hindi sila magkapareho, iba ang estado ng Pangulo, iba ang estado ng Defense Secretary (But when the President speaks with a representative of another country, he cannot simply say, 'I won't talk to you because you're a liar.' Those are different situations, and they should not be treated as the same. The President's role is different from that of the Defense Secretary)," Castro added.