The Navy is preparing a set of protocols to govern foreign vessels that intrude into Philippine waters without permission, including Chinese warships whose repeated unannounced presence has been an “irritant,” Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana told lawmakers on Tuesday. Lorenzana said the new standard operating procedures (SOPs) would identify steps to deal with the unauthorized entry of foreign vessels in the country’s territorial seas, following President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive requiring these ships to seek clearance before passing through. “The Navy is now preparing SOPs on what to do when there are intrusions,” Lorenzana said at a hearing of the House appropriations committee, which was deliberating on his department’s proposed P189-billion budget for 2020.

Yap, D. (2019, August 28). Lorenzana: Navy setting protocol on entry of foreign vessels. Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. A4.