Philippines' South China Sea patrols with US within its rights -security adviser
The Philippines’ joint patrols with the United States in the South China Sea are within Manila’s rights, and it will continue to support a free and open Indo-Pacific, its national security adviser said on Friday.
The Southeast Asian nation rejects China’s assertion that the Philippines enlisted “foreign forces” to patrol the South China Sea, National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said in a statement, responding to Beijing’s remarks.
“The Philippines is not stirring up trouble,” Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told reporters. “Our interests are to protect our rights.”
Teodoro said there will be several iterations of joint patrols moving forward.