With the recent sighting of at least 287 Chinese maritime militia vessels and warships in Philippine waters, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. ordered yesterday the filing of another diplomatic protest against China. He also reprimanded the National Task Force on the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) for issuing a press release on the development instead of informing him about it first. Locsin announced on Twitter the filing of another diplomatic protest after the NTF-WPS reported on Wednesday the presence of 287 Chinese militia ships across the West Philippine Sea despite increased Philippine patrols and the filing of multiple diplomatic protests by Manila.

Lee-Brago, P., Felipe, C. S., Tupas, E., & Cabrera, R. (2021, May 14). Locsin orders filing of protest over Chinese vessels in WPS. The Philippine Star, pp. 1, 4.