Marcos: Oil crisis could be ‘impetus’ for PH-China joint gas development

2026-03-24 - 21:51

MANILA, Philippines – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said rising tensions in the Middle East that have led to a worldwide oil and energy crisis could be the “impetus” for the Philippines to “come to an agreement” on joint energy exploration in the South China Sea. “That’s something we’ve been talking about for a great deal, but the territorial disputes... get in the way of that. Maybe this will provide the impetus for both sides to come to an agreement,” Marcos told Bloomberg News in a rare-sit down interview that was published on Tuesday, March 24. He was asked if he would “consider developing gas resources with China in the disputed regions... in the South China Sea.” Previous readouts and releases from Beijing and Manila under the Marcos administration have made no explicit mention of joint energy development in the South China Sea, a vast area of water that China claims almost entirely. The Philippines has sovereign rights — or exclusive rights to exploit natural maritime resources — in its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea. Manila calls those waters, including waters close to features it claims, the West Philippine Sea. Marcos was also asked if he sees a “reset” in bilateral ties with Beijing amid massive disruptions in global geopolitics. “I think it’s certainly going to happen. I don’t think that’s something that we can... like it’s an option. It’s happening now. There’s going to be a very, very serious restructuring,” he said. It was the first time Marcos had personally signaled a desire to restart and improve ties with its northern neighbor. Filipino diplomats had earlier signaled Manila’s intention to ease bilateral tensions through diplomacy. In late January 2026, ahead of talks between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Beijing on the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, the two countries met in their first bilateral political engagement in a year. The Philippines, which chairs ASEAN, hopes to conclude a COC before its chairmanship ends in 2026. Tensions between Manila and Beijing soured especially as the Philippines implemented a “transparency” policy that meant exposing China’s aggressive actions in the West Philippine Sea. Large gas deposits are believed to lie under the vast South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea. The previous China-friendly Duterte administration had sought joint energy exploration between Manila and Beijing. But the talks were scrapped just as that administration was winding down and as Marcos was about to step in because of constitutional constraints and issues of sovereignty. Energy emergency Even as the Philippines has yet to resolve an administration-shaking flood control corruption scandal, the Marcos administration has been struggling in the past month to communicate and manage an energy crisis that stemmed from attacks launched by Israel and its treaty-ally, the United States, against Iran in the Middle East. Iran responded by attacking Israel and American allies in the gulf. Tensions continued to escalate in the gulf, with the targeting of civilian infrastructure and even oil and gas sites. In Manila, this has translated to a sharp rise in fuel prices. The government has warned that inflation could hit double digits as a result of the global oil crisis. The Philippines sources most of its oil from the Middle East. The Philippines has also struggled in repatriating Filipinos, including overseas Filipino workers, amid tensions and escalating violence in the region. Some two million Filipinos work in the different gulf states. Marcos on March 24 declared a “state of national energy emergency.” – Rappler.com