By Patricia Lourdes Viray
MANILA, Philippines — A few analysts have expressed doubt on President Rodrigo Duterte's sincerity in ordering the military to occupy at least nine Philippine-controlled islands in the South China Sea.
On Thursday, Duterte said that there is a need to assert the country's jurisdiction over the disputed waters.
This follows reports that China is nearly finished with the construction of its military facilities on three islands in the Spratly Group.
Lyle Morris, policy analyst at the RAND Corporation, said that occupying the islets in the region might put the Philippines on the path to war with China.
"I put zero stock on this statement," Morris said on his Twitter account.
Bonnie Glaser, director of the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, compared Duterte's order to occupy South China Sea with his campaign promise to ride a jet ski to the contested waters.
"I put this in the same category as Duterte's pledge to ride a jet ski to Scarborough Shoal," Glaser said on Twitter.
During one of the presidential debates last year, Duterte said that he would ride a jet ski and plant a Philippine flag on Scarborough Shoal to assert the country's sovereignty.
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