President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has called on China to provide early notice before rocket stages or debris fall into Philippine waters, emphasizing that such communication would help mitigate risks and allow authorities to recover the debris safely.
“We just wish that perhaps they could warn us a little earlier so that we know the path of the rocket, where the path is and kung magbibitaw sila ng stages kung saan babagsak (if they will release stages, where they will fall),” Marcos stated during a press briefing with the Philippine media on Friday.
The President noted that this was not the first instance of suspected Chinese rocket debris landing in Philippine waters but stressed that no laws were violated in these occurrences. “There have been no casualties… The good side to all of this, wala naman casualty. Wala naman tinamaan. Hindi naman nagka-problema (…there were no casualties. No one was hit. There was no problem),” he remarked.
Marcos recalled a previous conversation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping during an earlier trip to Beijing, where he conveyed that Manila had no interest in retaining the debris. “You know, we have no interest in your rockets. Just tell us where they will land, we will collect it and give it to you. And that continues to be my offer to China… ‘Pag may babagsak, kukunin namin sa dagat tapos dadalhin namin sa inyo. Wala naman problema (If something falls, we will get it from the sea and bring it to you. No problem with that),” he said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs had previously expressed concern over the reported debris from China’s Long March 12 rocket entering Philippine maritime territory, urging spacefaring nations to act responsibly and safeguard the interests of other states.