Military suspects 'foreign power' mapping the Philippines
MANILA, Philippines — A Chinese national's detailed mapping of military camps and public places across Luzon has led military officials to suspect that foreign agents are working to create a blueprint of key locations in the Philippines.
The Philippine Navy's spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea on Tuesday, January 21, pointed to seemingly unrelated recent events that, when examined together, suggest a pattern of systematic mapping of military and civilian infrastructure across the country.
"Foreign nationals were arrested with fake government IDs, foreign nationals with birth certificates. So if we look at the entire expanse of the country... and start connecting the dots, there seems now to be a deliberate and calculated move to map out the country by a foreign power," Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad said during a press conference.
Military officials and law enforcers revealed yesterday the arrest of one Chinese national and two Filipinos for allegedly engaging in espionage. They are accused of conducting surveillance operations in military and civilian facilities, including areas where Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement sites are located.
The Chinese national, identified as Deng Yuanqing, reportedly spent more than a month starting December 2024 mapping locations from northern Luzon to the Bicol region, said Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesperson Col. Francel Magareth Padilla during the same press conference.
Deng has reportedly lived in the Philippines for over a decade.
"If we notice what happened just recently, the Chinese national may be an isolated case. But if you look at the bigger picture, last month we received the submersible glider, the drone from fisherfolk. It's the fifth that we have in our possession undergoing forensics," Trinidad said.
The Navy spokesperson said that if one takes "two steps further backward," these incidents may also be related to the recent discovery of foreign nationals with fake government IDs and the uncovering of "a local chief executive with a dubious character and background."
The alleged surveillance conducted by Deng covered not just military and police camps, but also shopping malls, communication and power grids, and major airports and seaports, Padilla said.
"Our intelligence operatives also noted that this Chinese national achieved this through a network of financiers, technical experts, which are also Chinese nationals, and support personnel," the AFP spokesperson added.
Deng — who is married to a Filipina — reportedly runs an undisclosed number of businesses in the country, the AFP spokesperson added.
"The same businesses are also being used as fronts to receive large amounts of funds to enable his illicit activities," she said.
Deng's equipment is capable of creating precise three-dimensional models of buildings and installations. "These are high-precision topographic mapping and 3D modeling of military installations and critical infrastructures," Padilla said.
Meanwhile, the military officials also linked Deng's surveillance activities to the recent discovery of underwater surveillance equipment in Philippine waters.
The military last year recovered five submersible drones, with the latest found in Masbate. The first drone, discovered in Calayan Island, had been collecting data about water depth, temperature and other ocean conditions.
The drone found in the waters off Masbate bore Chinese markings, but authorities have not directly accused China of owning the device.
RELATED: Navy probes origin of underwater drone found in Masbate
"While there is no direct correlation yet with what happened a few days ago, if we connect the dots, we don't have to look far, that there seems to be an orchestrated move by a foreign power to gather critical information in the maritime domain and on critical government infrastructures," Trinidad said. .
"Information that is derived from our seas would have political, economic and military applications," he added.
While military officials avoided explicitly naming China as the foreign power behind these activities, they noted that investigations with the National Bureau of Investigation are ongoing to uncover the full scope of these operations.
"Any foreign power who would like to take advantage of our country would need political, economic, and military information," Trinidad.
The AFP called for public vigilance but cautioned against panic. Trinidad also said the issues are "not yet a threat to national security but may pose a risk to public safety, to peace and order."
"While we do not want to create unnecessary panic, we ask our fellow Filipinos to be discerning and to help us," Padilla added, urging civilians, particularly fisherfolk, to report suspicious activities or equipment they might encounter.
Padilla said the AFP will modernize its defenses and beef up its cybersecurity to ensure it can "respond swiftly to attacks on our critical infrastructures and even to look at trojan horses within our midst."
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