Philippines appoints outspoken diplomat Teodoro Locsin as 'special envoy' to China

Then Philippine Foreign Minister Teodoro Locsin (left) speaking to China's top diplomat Wang Yi in an October 2018 photo. - AFP

MANILA (AFP): Former Philippine foreign minister Teodoro Locsin has been appointed the president's special envoy to Beijing, the government said Wednesday, despite the outspoken diplomat's profanity-laced criticism of China.

Locsin, currently the ambassador to Britain and Ireland, often used strong language while serving as foreign secretary under former president Rodrigo Duterte and once swore at China online over the presence of its vessels in the disputed South China Sea.