LAOAG CITY, Philippines – Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad, Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, said China’s claim of a “new model” to manage tensions in Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, or “zombie stories,” should be put to rest.
“I call them ‘zombie stories’, long dead but revived from the grave; best approach is to put these stories where they rightfully belong—in the grave, never to be heard,” Trinidad told reporters in a message on Tuesday.
Trinidad also deemed China’s claims as a “product of their imagination” that seeks to sow division among Filipinos.
“These stories are all fabricated, products of the imagination of the Chinese Communist Party to divert attention from their violations of international law, to cause divisiveness among us Filipinos and to provide a smoke screen as they advance their agenda in the West Phil Sea and the entire South China Sea,” Trinidad continued.
An unidentified Chinese Embassy spokesperson on Saturday said a “new model” to manage the tensions in the shoal where a Philippine Navy outpost is located was approved by officials in the Department of National Defense and the National Security Adviser.
National Security Adviser Eduardo Año and Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. both categorically denied such assertions.
The resupply missions to the BRP Sierra Madre, grounded in Ayungin Shoal became the flashpoint of tensions between Manila and Beijing.