Chinese Embassy denies NSC’s spy claims

The Chinese Embassy in Manila on Thursday denied that Beijing is connected to alleged espionage activities in the Philippines involving Filipinos.

In a statement, Chinese Embassy spokesperson Ji Lingpeng stressed that China “follows the principle of non-interference in other countries’ internal affairs.”

“We firmly oppose and strongly deplore irresponsible remarks made by certain Philippine agencies peddling so-called ‘Chinese spy’ narratives,” Ji said.

“Such accusations are malicious smears against China and yet another attempt to hype up the so-called ‘China threat’ rhetoric,” he added.

The Chinese Embassy made the remarks a day after the National Security Council (NSC) confirmed that authorities arrested Filipinos allegedly involved in Chinese-linked espionage and foreign-directed malign activities in the country. 

The NSC described it as a “serious national security matter” and assured that “the operations of these individuals acting on the behest of Chinese Intelligence have been addressed and terminated.” 

NSC spokesperson Cornelio Valencia later revealed that some information on the Philippines’ resupply missions in the West Philippine Sea was compromised and passed on to Chinese intelligence agents.

The NSC official said three Filipinos were arrested and said “there could be more,” but declined to say if charges will be filed.

Malacañang also cautioned government agencies and offices to be vigilant and protect their sensitive data after the NSC confirmed that Filipinos were arrested for alleged involvement in China-linked espionage activities.

Following the NSC’s statements, the Chinese Embassy alleged that the Philippines “fabricated a series of so-called ‘Chinese spy’ cases based on far-fetched allegations.” 

It may be recalled that in February, the Chinese Embassy denied that a Mongolian national arrested in Zambales for alleged espionage is linked to China.

“Mutual respect is the foundation of China-Philippines relations. If certain individuals or agencies in the Philippines persist in hyping up anti-China sentiments and recklessly targeting anything related to China, it will only undermine the atmosphere of cooperation and ultimately backfire,” the Chinese Embassy said. — JMA, GMA Integrated News