Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, Jr., chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), has ordered the deployment of Navy ships in the West Philippine Sea as China continues to defy the Philippine government’s demand to leave the Julian Felipe Reef. AFP spokesman Maj. Gen. Edgard Arevalo said the move is to beef up the conduct of maritime sovereignty patrols in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) amid the continuous presence of scores of Chinese militia in the Julian Felipe Reef which the government declared to be well-within the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

Recuenco, A. (2021, March 26). AFP to deploy more ships in West Ph Sea. Tempo, p. 3.