Philippines questions authenticity of China-circulated letter on Scarborough Shoal claim

A Philippine Coast Guard vessel was among the government ships sending supplies to 40 Filipino fishing boats at Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea on Sept 16, 2025. - Photo: PHILIPPINE COAST GUARD

MANILA: The Philippines has questioned the authenticity of a 1990 diplomatic letter recently circulated by the Chinese Embassy that appears to suggest Manila once acknowledged Scarborough Shoal was outside Philippine territorial sovereignty, as the long-running dispute over the South China Sea feature flared again.

Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) spokesman for maritime affairs Rogelio Villanueva Jr on Monday (March 16) said the Philippines would not “engage in conjecture or speculation over a document of uncertain origin and authenticity”, after the Chinese Embassy posted on Facebook on March 14 what it said was a letter from the Philippine Embassy in Bonn, Germany, dated Feb 2, 1990.