Marcos, who did not name China in his speech, commended the troops for exercising restraint “amidst intense provocation”, and said his country would always exercise its freedoms and rights in line with international law.
“In the performance of our duties, we will not resort to the use of force or intimidation, or deliberately inflict injury or harm to anyone,” Marcos said. “We stand firm. Our calm and peaceful disposition should not be mistaken for acquiescence.”
Recent maritime run-ins between China and the Philippines, a US treaty ally in Southeast Asia, have made the highly strategic South China Sea a potential flashpoint between Washington and Beijing.
The United States has condemned China’s actions and reaffirmed its ironclad defence commitments against any attack on Philippine aircraft or vessels in the South China Sea under their mutual defence treaty.
But the Philippines said on Friday there was no reason to invoke the treaty because China’s actions, which security officials have described as escalatory, could not be classified as an “armed attack”.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a conduit for more than US$3 trillion of annual shipborne commerce, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.
In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague said China’s claims had no legal basis, a decision Beijing has rejected.
“We are not in the business to instigate wars – our great ambition is to provide a peaceful and prosperous life for every Filipino,” Marcos said. “We refuse to play by the rules that force us to choose sides in a great power competition.”
