THE Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Monday clarified that the Philippines has no cooperation arrangement with Taiwan involving subsea cables or other critical undersea infrastructure, after remarks by a senior Philippine diplomat about deeper engagement with Taipei drew attention amid growing regional security concerns.
The clarification highlights a key distinction under Manila’s longstanding One China Policy. While the Philippines maintains unofficial economic, trade, cultural and technical ties with Taiwan, it does not have official political or diplomatic relations with the self-ruled island.
In a statement, the DFA reiterated its ‘longstanding and consistent One China Policy’ and stressed that ‘there is no cooperative arrangement with Taiwan on subsea cables or other critical undersea infrastructure.’
The department said discussions during an October 21 forum hosted by the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), a Washington-based think tank, focused on protecting critical undersea infrastructure, including telecommunications networks that support global communications, financial transactions and digital services.
‘The discussion at CNAS focused on the importance of protecting CUI, including through stronger public-private cooperation, particularly in the repair and recovery of damaged infrastructure,’ the DFA said.
‘It must be emphasized that the protection of CUI requires concerted efforts by all parties that benefit from these essential networks.’
The DFA also said there was ‘no mention of gray-zone activity cooperation with Taiwan.’
The statement followed remarks by Felipe F. Cariño III, deputy chief of mission at the Philippine Embassy in Washington, during a CNAS forum on protecting undersea cables and other critical infrastructure in the Indo-Pacific.
Cariño highlighted the strategic importance of the Bashi Channel, the waterway between northern Philippines and Taiwan through which major undersea communications links pass. He said the Philippines was ‘exploring deeper cooperation with our friends from Taiwan’ and described a ‘pragmatic and practical approach’ as necessary to protect mutual interests while remaining bound by the One China Policy.
Later, Cariño said the Philippines and Taiwan were exploring ‘practical and more pragmatic approaches in cooperation, including knowledge sharing and capacity building.’
When asked whether such cooperation could eventually involve measures to monitor or respond to disruptions affecting undersea cables, Cariño said discussions were continuing and some of the ideas raised during the forum could eventually take shape.
He also connected the issue to broader regional security concerns.
‘There have also been instances where our maritime capabilities were both on display and were cooperating,’ Cariño said. ‘We see this cooperation leading towards revealing and addressing the gray-zone issues in our part of the world.’
Cariño repeatedly emphasized public-private partnerships and capacity-building, areas generally associated with technical cooperation rather than formal government-to-government security arrangements.
The DFA’s clarification appears intended to underscore that distinction.
While Cariño discussed possible cooperation with Taiwan in areas such as knowledge-sharing, capacity-building and infrastructure resilience, the department stressed that no formal arrangement exists and that the forum did not involve discussions on an official security or political cooperation mechanism with Taipei.
The clarification also comes as Beijing closely watches Manila’s interactions with Taiwan. The Chinese Embassy in Manila previously expressed concern over what it described as recent Philippine moves involving Taiwan and urged the Philippines to strictly adhere to the One China principle.