Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian Marcos bid goodbye to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in a farewell call at Malacañang Palace.

“We will miss you,” Marcos told the Chinese envoy.

“It’s unfortunate we didn’t make much progress on the difficulties we have in the South China Sea,” he added.

In many occasions, it can be recalled that Marcos or the Department of Foreign Affairs had summoned Huang over China’s hostile actions in the South China Sea.

In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines over China’s claims in the South China Sea, saying that it had “no legal basis.”

China has since ignored the arbitral ruling, which invalidated its massive claims in the South China Sea.

In January of this year, Huang had hoped that both China and the Philippines will prioritize their “original aspirations” to work collaboratively for the well-being of their citizens.