AFP sees ‘foreign power’ mapping out PH after incidents of espionage, underwater drones, fake IDs

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) sees possible connection in the recent incidents of supposed espionage, recovery of underwater drones in Philippine waters, and fake identification cards of foreign nationals.

In a press briefing, Philippine Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea (WPS) Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad said a foreign power seems to be mapping out the Philippines.

“If you look at the entire expanse of the country, covering the different instruments of national power and start connecting the dots, there seems now to be a deliberate and calculated move to map out the country by a foreign power,” Trinidad said.

“Ito ang binabantayan ng inyong Armed Forces. (This is what your Armed Forces is looking out for). We are facing this and we are taking appropriate action,” he added.

AFP spokesperson Colonel Francel Margeth Padilla said the Philippine military is “looking at the bigger picture” and “connecting the dots” including the now-banned operations of Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs).

“As we take a step back and look at the bigger picture and connect the dots, tinitignan natin yung mga siloed approaches na iba-iba. Ang na-mention din dyan notably ng ating Chief of Staff is the illegal part of the POGO operations,” Padilla said.

(As we take a step back and look at the bigger picture and connect the dots, we look at the siloed approaches that are different. What was also mentioned notably by our Chief of Staff is the illegal part of the POGO operations.)

“So how everything forms part of a bigger picture, that is what we intend to achieve with all of this intel gathering that we're making,” she added.

Trinidad cited the recent arrest of a Chinese national and two Filipinos for allegedly conducting surveillance activities in the Philippines.

He also cited the recovery of five submersible drones from different areas in Philippine waters.

Aside from this, Trinidad noted the case of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo who was an alleged spy from China as well as the proliferation of fraudulent birth certificates of foreign nationals.

Asked if China was behind all of these incidents, Trinidad said, “I do not want to speculate on anything. We base our statements on facts.” — BAP, GMA Integrated News