Philippines Says Its South China Sea Actions ‘Driven Entirely by National Interest,’ Not a Screenplay as Suggested by China

‘No creative analogy or play of words will mask the real issue, which is China’s refusal to abide by international law,’ the Philippines said.

China's largest coast guard vessel 5901 in Philippine exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea on Jan. 5, 2025. Philippine Coast Guard via Reuters

After a series of confrontational incidents in the South China Sea, the Philippines’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) on March 10, rejected the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) accusation that the U.S. ally was merely a chess piece and that other parties were choreographing its territorial disputes with China.

CCP Foreign Minister Wang Yi alleged on March 7 that the “screenplay written by external forces” and covered by Western media is designed to make Beijing look bad.