We have exercised the greatest amount of patience and restraint in handling the disputes. We believe that we have the law on our side. Our claim to the West Philippine Sea is not something we imagined. It is something granted to us by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, affirmed by the judgment of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2016. We know what is right, we know what is ours and we are prepared to defend this.
On June 10th, 2024. See this statement in context.