A Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea has not stopped intrusions in Philippine waters although no transgression had gone unchallenged, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. told lawmakers on Tuesday. He said the Philippines is actively pursuing full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea in preparation for a Code of Conduct (COC) for states with claims in the South China Sea. “That of course has not stopped provocations in its waters. But no transgression goes unanswered; no hint of usurpation goes unchallenged,” Locsin said in a statement at the House hearing on the proposed 2020 budget of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).

Talavera, C., & Lee-Brago, P. (2019, September 6). Locsin: Sea code no guarantee vs intrusion. The Philippine Star, p. 9.