Senator Francis Tolentino urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to recall the Philippine Ambassador to China as a way of protesting after the recent water cannon attack incident by the Chinese Coast Guard on the Philippine Vessel during the resupply mission in the West Philippine Seas (WPS) last Friday, November 10.

In a radio interview, Tolentino said that recalling the envoy to China is to show a high level of condemnation, clarifying that there is no means of cutting the Philippines’ diplomatic relations with the country.

China’s latest acts of aggression have been slammed by the Senators, urging Malacañang to heed the recommendations under Senate Resolution No. 79 by bringing the Philippines' complaints against China before the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

Tolentino said that the embassy in Beijing would still be open to issuing visas and letting the personnel and consular officers work, as only the ambassador would be recalled.

He stressed that recalling the ambassador to Beijing is only temporary so he can return home and send a strong message to them and tell them that the action was a violation of the rights of conducting resupply missions at the BRP Sierra Madre.

Moreover, having the country’s ambassador to China will send a strong signal that the Philippines is highly condemning the continuous aggression of the Chinese vessels in the WPS.

The senator then pointed out and clarified that recalling the Philippine Ambassador to China could be a way of informing the country to stop the attack and that they are going overboard.

Tolentino also mentioned that there were already at least six violent incidents that occurred in the WPS.