Philippines protests Chinese envoy's remarks, calling them a 'thinly veiled threat'

Philippines protests Chinese envoy's remarks, calling them a 'thinly veiled threat' left Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Ezra Acayan/Pool via Reuters Ezra Acayan/Pool via Reuters https://th-i.thgim.com/public/incoming/rz946y/article71594026.ece/alternates/FREE_1200/2026-10-06T121214Z_1867923774_RC2MXNATEF1J_RTRMADP_3_PHILIPPINES-POLAND.JPG EZRA ACAYAN Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. speaks during a press conference with Polish President Karol Nawrocki (not pictured), at Malacanang Palace on October 6, 2026, in Manila, Philippines. Ezra Acayan/Pool via REUTERS China and the Philippines have long clashed over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Manila President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his government on Friday (October 16, 2026) protested remarks by China's ambassador to Manila, calling them “a thinly veiled threat of the use of force” in the latest flare up in the two Asian countries' longstanding territorial dispute in the South China Sea.