Teodoro accuses China of “interference” in Philippine affairs

The Philippine Defense Secretary accused the Chinese embassy in Manila of interfering in Philippine domestic affairs, dismissing threats that relations between the two neighbors will deteriorate.

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr speaking at the Military Law and Operations Strategic Engagement (MILOPS) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia early August. Official handout.

Manuel Mogato | August 16, 2026

MANILA — Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr has accused the Chinese embassy in Manila of interfering in Philippine domestic affairs, dismissing threats made by a foreign ministry official in Beijing that relations between the two neighbors will deteriorate.

In a statement, Teodoro said the Chinese embassy has “actively intervened in local law enforcement processes and threatened retaliation against Filipinos in China.

There were reports over 100 Filipino workers in China, Macau, and Hongkong have been arrested by Chinese immigration agents, believed to be in retaliation after Chinese workers were rounded up in a steel factory owned by a Chinese national, Tony Yang, in Mindanao.

This week, Tony Yang’s second factory in the Davao area was raided by the National Bureau of Investigation.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry official warned anew that Teodoro’s “consistent attacks and smears against China harm not only the bilateral relations.”

“It is the interests of the Philippines and all its people that will bear the brunt,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said.

“The latest Chinese Foreign Ministry statement against me is a classic squid tactic—disinformation through avoidance,” Teodoro countered. (Also read: Philippines says China’s sanctions against Teodoro are an ‘unfriendly act’)

Guo said it was Teodoro who personally led the arrest of Chinese workers who were supposedly lawfully working in the Philippines.

At least 69 Chinese nationals were arrested during a raid of the Sanjia Steel Corporation in Misamis Oriental last May for handling potentially hazardous materials.

Businessman Tony Yang, a brother of Michael Yang, who served as presidential economic adviser during the time of President Rodrigo Duterte, owned the steel factory.

Teodoro defended the law enforcement operations against the Chinese factory, saying it “unearthed grave crimes committed against Filipinos by the Chinese principals of Sanjia under the notorious Tony Yang and his dummies.”

“The first question is: were these individuals involved in illegal activities?,” asked Teodoro. “The plain and simple answer is yes—unless Chinese officials consider the regurgitation of substandard, radioactively tainted steel, the destruction of the environment by dumping untreated, polluted water into rivers, and the release of untreated toxic fumes to be legitimate practices.”

He said this is backed by “indisputable and legally admissible evidence” gathered by law enforcers through valid search warrants.

Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission executive director Benjamin Acorda Jr told senators during a public hearing that Chinese officials who visited his office have threatened to arrest Filipinos in China if the Chinese workers are not released.

“The latest Chinese Foreign Ministry statement against me is a classic squid tactic—disinformation through avoidance,” said Teodoro.