(Eagle News)—-Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Monday, Nov. 26, said the document which Senator Antonio Trillanes IV said was the draft agreement on oil and gas exploration signed between the Philippines and China may have been written by Trillanes’ staff instead.
In a television interview, Locsin said the draft agreement which was submitted to the Chinese side was the one he himself penned, after all.
“How can I respond to non-sense? It’s not even a draft. It may have been written by Trillanes’ staff. I can’t respond… I’m dealing with a foreign power. He’s dealing with a staff member,” Locsin said.
Trillanes had hit the MOU, saying it may allow China to encroach on territories clearly considered Filipino.
“Sa nakuha nating draft, hindi dinesignate yung mga maritime areas na ico-cover ng maritime exploration. Nakalagay sa draft ng China, ‘relevant maritime areas.’ Ang dapat po dito ay yung disputed maritime areas lang sa ilang overlapping maritime zones dun sa Kalayaan Island Group,” he had said in an interview.
But Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio and former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario approved of the Locsin draft, which the Palace said was an “agreement to agree” on oil and gas exploration.