An Armed Forces of the Philippines official said Wednesday that indicators point to the Chinese Communist Party, or its proxies, in the circulation of a fake letter. The forged document was made to look as though Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. had signed it. The letter dealt with Ayungin Shoal, a repeated flashpoint between Manila and Beijing in the West Philippine Sea. The assessment was laid out by the AFP spokesperson covering the West Philippine Sea. Military officials treat the letter's spread as part of a disinformation effort tied to the maritime dispute. Relations between the two countries have been strained by repeated confrontations around the shoal and nearby waters. The military did not detail how widely the fake letter had circulated.