Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro sharply criticized China on Tuesday after receiving a written statement laying out Beijing’s stance on the South China Sea during his appearance at the Seoul Defense Dialogue in South Korea.
The unusual moment unfolded as Teodoro was delivering his remarks, when a man wearing a white sports coat approached from behind and set a piece of paper on the table next to him.
Pausing mid-speech, Teodoro looked at the document and told the audience, “I have a note here, I think this is from China.”
He then asked those in attendance, “And may I read it?” before reading the message aloud.
According to the note, “China’s position on the South China Sea arbitration is clear, consistent and firm. They have no position. The arbitration violates fundamental principles of international law.”
Philippines Defense Minister Gilberto Teodoso (5th from right) can be seen on stage with other world leaders during the opening ceremony of the 15th Seoul Defense Dialogue (SSD) in Seoul on September 8, 2026. (Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP via Getty Images)
The note likely referred to the 2016 legal case that the Philippines brought against China under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The case, titled the South China Sea Arbitration, determined that China was unlawfully reclaiming land in the Philippines’ territorial waters.
China has long rebuked the ruling and consistently accuses the Philippines of infringing on China’s sovereignty in the disputed waters.
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The long-running dispute has created a number of tense standoffs between the two countries’ navies.
Two Philippine Coast Guard ships were reportedly surrounded by Chinese vessels in a tense standoff in the South China Sea on Monday, further raising tensions between the two countries, in South China Sea, Off Philippines on March 24, 2025. (Philippine Coast Guard (PCG)/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“How can you deal with a country in an international forum – beyond the question asked to me – disrespecting the organizers of this forum, how do you expect to deal with it civilly?” Teodoro asked the crowd.
“I ask you the question, is this the right paper to post to me when I’m being asked a question on the floor? And how will you treat this kind of behavior? It not only disrespects, shows, if this is a Chinese position sent to me, it not only disrespects international law, throwing UNCLOS to the floor and trampling upon it, but it also disrespects the basic decency accorded that should be accorded to our most gracious host, the Republic of Korea and the rest of the audience here,” he continued.
A nuclear-powered Type 094A Jin-class ballistic missile submarine of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy navigates during a military display in the South China Sea. (Stringer/Reuters)
“So, perhaps basic decency and behavior is what China needs to do. This is actual coercion, bullying and aggression. I will keep this paper as a memento of how desperate China is and how ineffective its position is in the face of a free audience. Thank you very much for the person who gave me this piece of paper. You have just done your country a great service,” Teodoro added.
“I think it is well known to the public, to everyone here about the Philippine situation where we face challenges daily from the People’s Republic of China which tries to occupy and illegally assert its presence over our territory and especially our exclusive economic zone. In contravention with the UNCLOS. We live in a very interconnected world, and there is no right for any state of that matter to appropriate an international common for its exclusive use or right, contrary to what the international norms clearly state. So the Philippines has been forced to enter into creative defense arrangements and alliances,” Teodoro concluded.