President Marcos Jr. Seeks Reset in Relations With China

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. met with Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan for 80 minutes on July 22, 2026, at Malacañang to seek a reset in bilateral relations. The meeting aimed to end a series of recent confrontations in the West Philippine Sea and move toward better engagement between the two nations.

This diplomatic push follows an incident near Ayungin Shoal where China Coast Guard personnel allegedly assaulted Philippine Navy servicemen with wooden batons, causing injuries to at least two people. Tensions were further heightened by an AI-generated video from Chinese state media that depicted Filipinos as monkeys, prompting condemnation and diplomatic protests from the Philippine Department of the Interior and Local Government.

During the discussions, the Philippine government challenged China's assertions that Manila violated a July 2024 arrangement regarding Ayungin Shoal. Marcos Jr. requested that Beijing produce the document in question and asserted that any previous secret deal concerning the BRP Sierra Madre outpost was not entered into by the current administration.