Philippines Explores Cooperation with Taiwan to Protect Undersea Cables

The Philippines is exploring deeper cooperation with Taiwan to protect undersea cables and address 'gray zone' activity, despite Manila's one-China policy, which recognizes Beijing rather than Taipei. This was stated by Felipe F. Carino III, deputy chief of mission at the Philippine Embassy in Washington, during a seminar organized by the Center for a New American Security.

The Philippines and Taiwan have repeatedly denounced Chinese activities aimed at pressuring them without escalating into direct confrontation. China claims Taiwan as its own territory and maintains overlapping claims with both countries in the South China Sea. Carino linked the security of undersea cables to regional tensions, although he did not mention China by name, and noted that this 'pragmatic and practical' approach is necessary to protect mutual interests in the Bashi Channel, between Taiwan and the Philippines.

The diplomat stated that the security of undersea cables is vital because they carry nearly all intercontinental data flows, and cited that between 60% and 67% of cyber incidents occur in the region. He added that both countries are exploring practical cooperation approaches, including knowledge-sharing and capacity-building, to move forward in addressing 'gray zone' issues in the region.

China warned the Philippines that it must 'strictly abide by the one-China principle through concrete actions,' and sent a similar message to Taiwan, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning on Thursday. Asked whether the cooperation could include joint patrols or accountability mechanisms for vessels that disrupt communications, Carino said he had no specific details, but stated that this is an evolving cooperation that could materialize.

This month, the Philippine Coast Guard reported that it had deployed its largest vessel and an aircraft to confront a Chinese research vessel operating off the northern province of Batanes, near undersea cable corridors. At the same seminar, Andrea Yang, Taiwan's deputy representative in Washington, mentioned the imprisonment in Taiwan of a Chinese ship captain for damaging an undersea cable, and noted that Taiwan will allocate more resources to developing unmanned systems to improve maritime surveillance. Yang also stated that interference with undersea cables should be addressed by the United Nations, which should consider mechanisms to prevent such 'misconduct.'