There is an urgent need for the Philippines to upgrade and modernize its Coast Guard, Navy and Air Force to prevent other countries from encroaching on its territory especially the maritime ones.
“We should have strengthen our Coast Guard 10 years (so that intruders) cannot encroached on our territories. That’s the purpose now of our (modernization program) to give our Coast Guard, Navy and Air Force a minimum credible deterrent so that our territories will not just be encroach upon,” he added.
The DND chief stressed that the Philippines is not in a position to prevent China from constructing more of their man-made islands despite the ruling of the UN Permanent Court of Arbitration last July 12.
“I don’t think they will listen to us, (if they will do that, they will just continue doing that) despite our objections, we can’t do anything, so we’ll just watch them do that because we don’t have any capability to prevent them from doing that,” he stressed.
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