Chinese Embassy rejects PH call for restraint on Taiwan, cites One-China Policy
In this image taken off video, a Taiwan fighter jet lands at the Hsinchu Airbase in Taiwan on Monday, Dec. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Wu Taijing)
The Chinese Embassy in Manila rejected the Philippines’ call for restraint over China’s military activities around Taiwan, accusing “relevant Philippine figures” of interfering despite Manila’s commitment to the one-China policy.
The Embassy said this after Department of National Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said Manila was “deeply concerned” by China’s actions around Taiwan, stressing that principles of self-restraint and international law must be observed and reaffirming the Philippines’ support for a “free, open, stable, and rules-based Indo-Pacific.”
In a statement on Thursday, Jan. 1, the Chinese Embassy said the Taiwan situation is an “internal affair.”
“Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory. The Taiwan question is purely China’s internal affair, which brooks no external interference,” it said.
The Embassy said Beijing had lodged “serious protests” with the Philippine side and “firmly rejects the wrongful statement,” following Teodoro’s warning that China’s military and coast guard actions around Taiwan undermine regional peace and stability and have implications beyond cross-Strait relations.
It likewise argued that the main threat to peace in the Taiwan Strait comes from what it called separatist forces and outside support for them.
“We should not ignore that the biggest threat to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is ‘Taiwan independence’ forces’ separatist activities and external connivance and support for these activities,” the Embassy said.
It also invoked the One-China Policy as a binding international norm, saying it remains the political foundation of China’s diplomatic relations, including with the Philippines.
“The One-China principle is a prevailing international consensus and basic norm in international relations,” it said.
“The Philippines made a clear commitment to one-China when establishing diplomatic ties with China,” it added.
It urged Philippine officials to adhere to that commitment and refrain from commenting on the Taiwan issue.
“We call on relevant Philippine figures to abide by the commitment of their government, stop interfering in China’s internal affairs, and stop aiding and abetting separatism for ‘Taiwan independence,’” it said.