The Department of National Defense (DND) on Saturday pledged to maintain its military presence in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), asserting that the deployment is crucial for protecting the nation’s maritime boundaries and uncovering illicit actions by foreign ships.
This announcement follows the recent 10th-anniversary commemoration of the historic 2016 arbitral decision, which invalidated China’s expansive South China Sea claims and recognized Manila’s sovereign rights over its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
“As such, the DND and Armed Forces of the Philippines will unceasingly deploy our assets to secure our archipelagic nation and continue to uphold the international rules-based order and international law by documenting and exposing illegal, coercive, aggressive, and deceitful activities in our waters and EEZ,” National Defense spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arsenio Andolong said.
“We will demonstrate to the world that our actions are rooted in evidence, truth, and international law, not propaganda,” he added.
Handed down on July 12, 2016, by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, the landmark ruling determined that Beijing’s sweeping maritime claims had no foundation under UNCLOS. The DND emphasized that global backing for the verdict remains robust.
“The international community stands firmly with us, with 27 nations demanding respect for the Arbitral Ruling and another 17 explicitly backing it,” Andolong said.
In a corresponding briefing, the National Maritime Council (NMC) remarked that this collective international solidarity cements the legality and binding power of the arbitration victory. The NMC reaffirmed Manila’s preference for peaceful dialogue to handle maritime friction, despite Beijing’s stubborn refusal to accept the court’s decision.
Furthermore, the NMC took aim at a recent propaganda video from Chinese state-affiliated outlet China Daily, which employed racist tropes by portraying Filipinos as a monkey outfitted in a traditional barong and salakot.
The council noted that such derogatory media undermines diplomatic goodwill and does nothing to erode the Philippines’ legal rights in the WPS.
The defense establishment maintained that the 2016 arbitration is not merely a legal win, but a cornerstone of the country’s national security framework.
“This legal victory is an enduring inheritance belonging to every Filipino citizen and the generations of Filipinos yet to come,” Andolong said.
“The DND and AFP will not waver, back down, or yield an inch of our territory. We will continue to build a credible deterrent that honors this victory, secures our seas, and ensures a peaceful, rules-based order in our West Philippine Sea,” he added.