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"THE THING SPEAKS FOR ITSELF,"

Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gibo Teodoro during the Seoul Defense Dialogue (SDD) 2026 in Seoul, South Korea, on Tuesday, Sept. 8, responded to a note from China's side stating their position on the 2016 Arbitral Award on the West Philippine Sea, which in turn, was rebutted by Teodoro. (Video courtesy of DND)

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Transcript
00:00In international law, unfortunately, just like, is, just like, I have a note here, I think this is from China,
00:14you should have joined the, and may I read it, China's position on the South China Sea arbitration is clear,
00:21consistent, and firm.
00:22They have no position. The arbitration violates fundamental principles of international law. So what you sign, UNCLOS, you mean, violates
00:32international law. That's what you mean.
00:34The so-called award is illegal, null, and void, so say you, and has no binding force because you don't
00:42want to be subjected to UNCLOS.
00:43China neither accepts nor recognizes the award, of course, because you lost, and opposes it, and will never accept any
00:52claim or action arising from it.
00:55These are words slipped to me.
00:59And there is a legal principle called res ipsa locutur, the thing speaks for itself.
01:04How can you deal with a country in an international forum, beyond the question asked to me?
01:15Disrespecting the organizers of this forum, how do you expect to deal with it civilly?
01:21I ask you the question, is this the right paper to pose to me when I'm being asked a question
01:29on the floor?
01:31And how will you treat this kind of behavior?
01:34It not only disrespects, shows, if this is a Chinese position sent to me,
01:41it not only disrespects international law,
01:47throwing UNCLOS to the floor and trampling upon it,
01:51but it also disrespects the basic decency accorded,
01:55that should be accorded to our most gracious hosts, the Republic of Korea,
01:59and the rest of the audience here.
02:02So, perhaps, basic decency and behavior is what China needs to do.
02:09Now, thank you very much.
02:15In Filipino, maging disente lang kayo ng konti,
02:20mahiya naman kayo ng konti.
02:22You can translate it in your own language.
02:25Now, to go back to the question, we need to coalesce.
02:30And secondly, this is not gray zone anymore.
02:34This is actual coercion, bullying, and aggression.
02:39I will keep this paper as a memento of how desperate China is
02:47and how ineffective its position is in the face of a free audience.
02:53Thank you very much for the person who gave me this piece of paper.
02:59You've just done your country a great service.
03:02And I hope you don't suffer in a gulag for it.
03:07Thank you, guys.
03:08Thank you, guys.
03:08Thank you, guys.
03:09Thank you, guys.
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