Despite his order for Philippine troops to occupy the nine islands in the Kalayaan group of Islands, President Rodrigo Duterte said that China can relax for he is not pitching a fight against them.
Duterte said that he has no plan on getting involved in an international war and would like to maintain the friendship he had established with China.
“China can relax. We are friends, we will not go to war,” he said. “We’re just trying to maintain the balance of geopolitical situation there.”
He said that he does not mean any harm to China, however, after the Philippines established occupancy on the nine islands no other countries will be allowed to make any exploration there.
Duterte had ordered the Military to occupy the islands “and to claim it as ours”.
He said that he have asked the armed forces to build a structure there and put the Philippine flag as a sign that the country has claimed it.
“Those Oslands that we have occupied it’s already ours and will hang on to it,” he said.
Recently,China has expressed their concern over Duterte’s order of occupying the islands in the Kalayaan group of Islands.
“We hope that the Philippine side will continue to properly manage maritime disputes with Chinaand work with us to maintain the sound and steady growth of China-Philippine relationship,” Hua said.
Duterte also announced that he will sign an executive order renaming the Benham Rise to Philippines reefs or the Philippine rise.
“On the other side, the Benham rites, facing Tuguegarao that’s also ours and when I come back maybe I will be signing an Executive Order renaming it the Philippine reefs or the Philippine rise,” he said.
He said that he would like to establish the claim of the country on the islands before other countries stock their weapons there.
He added that he does not want the Philippines to be involved in any international war reason why he would like to maintain the good relationship between China and even the United States.
