00:00Defense Secretary Gibot Yadoro didn't mince words when responding to China's recent accusations
00:05emphasizing that he would not engage with a nation that slams the Philippines.
00:10His firm stance came just ahead of the ASEAN Defense Minister's meeting
00:13where tensions over the West Philippine Sea took center stage.
00:17Patrick DeJesus reports.
00:21Defense Secretary Gibot Yadoro slammed China's recent statements against the Philippines.
00:27He said this is the reason why he did not take any opportunity to talk with China's defense chief
00:34during the ASEAN Defense Minister's meeting in Malaysia.
00:38In a statement issued by the spokesperson of the Chinese Defense Ministry
00:43a day before the ASEAN Defense Minister's meeting,
00:46the Philippines was accused of blackmailing China over the West Philippine Sea issue.
00:52Would you talk to, or would you offer to talk to somebody who slammed your country that way?
01:00Of course not.
01:01I mean, I would be willing to talk if there was a semblance of good faith.
01:08Kung nagpakita ng sinseridad, takausapin ko bakit hindi.
01:13Biro mo magsasabi sila, gusto namin makipag-usap, mabait kami,
01:17buta sasabihang ka on the other hand na gano'n.
01:20Sampal sa mukha yun, kaya hindi ko tatanggapin.
01:23At the APEC Summit in South Korea,
01:26President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. shook hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping
01:31as a gesture of common courtesy.
01:34Despite this,
01:35Teodoro said the Philippines' defense policy will remain unchanged.
01:40Our job really is to pursue Philippine resilience and uphold international law.
01:48So our defense engagements under President Marcos
01:52is subject to a plan already and subject to guidance.
01:58We cannot put any meaning into the gesture of President Marcos
02:03of approaching President Xi Jinping.
02:08Canada, meanwhile, lauded the Philippines for upholding international law.
02:13This came alongside the formal signing of the status of Visiting Forces Agreement
02:18or SOFFA between the two countries.
02:21This is the first such agreement for Canada in the Indo-Pacific region.
02:26And this was a deliberate choice.
02:28Canada is now the fifth country to have such a defense agreement with the Philippines.
02:35Negotiations are ongoing to finalize the SOFFA with France,
02:39with the United Kingdom has also expressed its intention to pursue a similar agreement.
02:45Patrick Dezos from the National TV Network for a New and Better Philippines.
