China Angry Philippines Selamat Presiden Taiwan, Ferdinand Marcos Sampai Clarifikasi

Philippine President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. (Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he did not support Taiwan's independence. He reaffirmed his country's commitment to the One China policy.

This was said to have responded to China's anger over Marcos' recent statement congratulating the winner of the Taiwan election.

"The One China policy remains in effect. We have strictly and carefully adhered to the One China policy since adopting it," Marcos said during an interview with GMA News TV broadcast on Tuesday, January 23, quoted by Channel News Asia.

Marcos argued congratulations to Lai Ching-te after becoming the elected Taiwanese President on Saturday, January 13 as a form of "common opaque". He also admitted that he did not want any conflict to respond to anger against China.

"We don't support Taiwan independence. Taiwan is China Province," said Marcos

Anger over Marcos' congratulations was expressed by the Spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The spokesman asked Marcos to read more books to explore the ins and outs of problems in Taiwan.

The president was asked by the Philippine Minister of Defense to speak up. He assessed that the spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs gave an inadequate statement.

The Philippines and China are known to have clashed over the past year, when Marcos made an offer to his defense ally, the United States (US). The offer includes expanding access to US military bases.

China views this as a provocation and part of the US opposition to China's policy on Taiwan.

Meanwhile, the Philippines and Taiwan have unofficial relationships because they both have "economic and cultural offices" in Taipei and Manila, which also serve as de facto embassies.