The Ministry of State Security said it recently discovered an espionage case involving Filipino nationals based in China, the official Xinhua News Agency reported on Thursday. The three — David Servañez, Albert Endencia and Nathalie Plizardo — have been operatives for Manila and carried out secret intelligence tasks in China, the report said, adding that the case is under investigation.

China’s detention is the latest sign of growing tensions between Beijing and Manila, as the two countries continue to clash over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. In the past, China has detained foreigners during periods of strained diplomatic ties. In 2018, two Canadian nationals were arrested just days after a top executive at Huawei Technologies Co, Ltd was taken into custody.

China’s state broadcaster released video confessions from the three individuals on Thursday, who said they regretted the move. “Filipino nationals in China are supposed to be an important bridge for the promotion of China-Philippines friendship, but they have been exploited by the Philippine espionage agencies and turned from a ‘bridge of friendship’ to ‘hotbed of spying’,” CCTV said. 

A Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Philippine media reported last month that three Filipinos were detained in China’s Hainan province. It’s unclear if the two cases are linked. 

Manila has also accused Chinese nationals of spying on the nation. In January, Philippine authorities arrested a Chinese national and two Filipino associates for alleged espionage. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said then that he was “very disturbed” by espionage operations on the military and coast guard.

Last month, Philippine authorities said they have uncovered a network of hundreds of alleged Chinese spies, a much more extensive operation than previously disclosed. 

“Recently, the Philippines have fabricated several cases of Chinese spies, and they have made presumption of guilt without any clear facts, and try to vilify and politicise these cases,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said at a regular briefing on Thursday. 

“We firmly reject that and have lodged stern representations,” Guo said.

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