Teodoro: Trust needed for South China Sea talks

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro firmly dismissed what appeared to be Chinese propaganda at an international defense forum, stating that Beijing suffers from a "deficit of trust" in dialogues over the South China Sea dispute.

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At the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Teodoro received questions from Senior Colonels Zhang Chi and Qi Dapeng of China’s National Defense University. Zhang asked whether the Philippines was concerned about being drawn into a proxy war on behalf of the United States.

Meanwhile, Qi questioned why the Philippines does not pursue effective dialogue with China over maritime disputes, as Vietnam and Malaysia reportedly do.

To which Teodoro responded, “Thank you for the propaganda spiels disguised as questions.”