The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Commander-in-Chief Sobehana said on Thursday that the Philippine military is considering building facilities on islands in the West Philippine Sea in a bid to assert its sovereignty, following Beijing’s approach, according to the Central News Agency.
We are already thinking about how to strengthen our position in that area (West Philippine Sea),” Sobehana said. We are considering the idea of building facilities in those areas, just like China is doing.”
He added that the reason Manila authorities have not built facilities on the islands in the West Philippine Sea is because of the countries’ agreement not to build on South China Sea features, but “China has violated (the agreement), so we will now start building. It’s up to the West Philippine Sea National Working Group (to start construction).”
Sobeijana added that the military would only choose to go to war in the West Philippine Sea as a last resort. They will continue to seek all means to peacefully defend Philippine sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea.
The dispute between the Philippines and China in the South China Sea has been heating up since late March, and the two sides have been on a constant diplomatic offensive. The Philippine government has accused China of violating Philippine sovereignty with the assembly of some 220 Chinese maritime militia vessels on Whitsun Reef.
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