President Marcos upset but won’t seek China envoy’s recall

TOKYO — While he may be personally “upset” by what has been described as the “hostile” behavior of Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian, President Marcos said he won’t seek the recall of the envoy because the Philippines cannot afford to commit mistakes that may cause “huge trouble.”

There have been calls to expel Huang because of his supposedly disrespectful behavior, including his alleged bullying of Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr.

Some lawmakers have urged Marcos to send the envoy home, accusing Huang of aggravating the already tense situation in the West Philippine Sea instead of working to boost ties between Manila and Beijing.

In an interview with reporters here yesterday, Marcos said Huang was just doing his job and was stating the position of China on the West Philippine Sea row, and that any envoy who would succeed Huang is expected to do the same.

“He is the ambassador of China so he will always take the Chinese position. Again, if it is about me, maybe I’ll be upset,” the President said in Filipino.

“But you are not talking about me. You are talking about the Philippines. It does not serve any purpose for us to lose our temper or overreact,” he added.

According to Marcos, the Philippines may inform China if Huang is really objectionable. “He (Huang) is continuing to state the Chinese narrative. Of course, we won’t agree with that narrative, but I cannot see him doing anything else, so we just keep trying,” the Chief Executive said.

“Because the truth of the matter is even if the ambassador is replaced, the next ambassador would state the same line of China. They won’t stop that. That is why we have to work around it... We cannot overreact...It is not about us, it is about the Philippines,” he added.

“If we commit a mistake, it would lead to a huge trouble. We don’t want to go anywhere near that situation,” he said in mixed Filipino and English.

“I wish we could talk about it over the table as opposed to colliding with each other’s ship in the open sea. Of course, I will prefer the less confrontational method of trying to decide these things, but it is what it is,” the President said, referring to the ramming by a Chinese coast