On October 21, 2026, Felipe F. Carino III, Manila's deputy chief of mission in Washington, said at a seminar hosted by the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) that the Philippines is exploring deeper cooperation with Taiwan to protect undersea cables and address "gray-zone" activity. He described the approach as both "pragmatic and practical," aimed at protecting shared interests in the Bashi Channel, the body of water separating Taiwan and the Philippines.
Carino stressed that the Philippines is pursuing this cooperation "despite our one-China policy," which recognizes Beijing and not Taipei. He said the two sides are exploring "practical and more pragmatic ways of cooperation, including knowledge sharing and capacity building," and framed cable security as linked to broader tensions in the South China Sea, though he stopped short of naming China directly.
Carino noted that undersea cables carry nearly all intercontinental data traffic, and pointed out that "60-67% of cyber incidents happen" in the region. He called these facilities "very important, they need to be protected," and said Manila is therefore exploring deeper cooperation with "Taiwanese friends." Asked whether cooperation could extend to joint patrols or holding ships accountable for damaging communications, he said it is an evolving cooperation and that such ideas may materialize in the future.
At the same seminar, Andrea Yang, Taiwan's deputy representative in Washington, referred to the jailing in Taiwan of a Chinese ship captain over damage to an undersea cable. She said Taiwan would put more resources into developing unmanned systems to improve maritime surveillance, and argued that interference with undersea cables is an issue the United Nations should address, calling for mechanisms to prevent "improper behavior." Taiwan has stepped up efforts to protect undersea communications links after several cable incidents involving vessels linked to China.
Earlier this month, the Philippine Coast Guard said it had deployed its largest vessel and an aircraft to challenge a Chinese research ship operating off northern Batanes province, near undersea-cable corridors. According to a statement by Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela on October 2, the vessel "Jia Hai Ke 7" is a seabed survey ship that stayed for four days in waters where key undersea cable corridors cross, and even falsified its Automatic Identification System (AIS) position to hide its movements. The statement noted that three Taiwanese coast guard vessels were also present in the area, monitoring the Chinese ship.
Carino said the two sides are exploring "practical and more pragmatic" cooperation through knowledge sharing and capacity building, adding, "We believe that this cooperation will help... address the gray-zone issues in our region." The effort remains exploratory, but both sides have clearly identified cable security in the Bashi Channel as a shared interest, with possible future extensions to joint patrols and accountability mechanisms.