The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Thursday vowed to extend help to government agencies involved in the investigation of alleged espionage operations in the Philippines.
In a press statement, the DFA said it has taken note of the ongoing investigation being conducted as regards the alleged espionage operations in the country by a foreign national in collaboration with Filipinos.
”In accordance with its mandate to help protect national security, the Department takes any indication of espionage operations by foreign nationals seriously, and stands ready to support the Department of Justice, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Armed Forces of the Philippines and other relevant government agencies as they undertake their respective mandates in accordance with the law,” the DFA said.
Philippine authorities nabbed a Chinese national and two Filipinos suspected of conducting espionage operations in military bases, police camps, local government offices, among others.
According to the Bureau of Immigration (BI), it had obtained the records of the Chinese national who was arrested over alleged espionage activities in the Philippines.
To recall, BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the 39-year-old Chinese man has been travelling in and out of the Philippines since 2015 and is allegedly married to a Filipina.
Further, the arrested suspects supposedly visited Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) sites of the Philippines and the United States.
China, in response, slammed the Philippines for allegedly shadow-chasing and peddling the report on the supposed Chinese spy caught in Manila.
“The Chinese government, as always, asks Chinese nationals overseas to abide by local laws and regulations,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said in a press conference in Beijing.
—VAL, GMA Integrated News
