There’s no need for a Philippine military buildup in the Spratlys archipelago as the security environment in the region is seen to have greatly improved with President Duterte’s rapport with Beijing and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)’s commitment to fast-track the adoption of a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said yesterday. “If you tighten the security, it means that they are expecting somebody will attack you. Nobody is attacking somebody out there,” Lorenzana said. “He went to China and immediately after his meeting with President Xi Jinping, tension in the region has gone down,” he said, referring to Duterte’s visit to China last May. Lorenzana said the decision not to further bolster military readiness in the region is based on a trust in ASEAN member-nations’ commitment to respect the sovereignty and stick to dialogue in settling territorial disputes.

Laude, J. (2017, November 18). DND: No need for military buildup in Spratlys. The Philippine Star, p. 7.