Remulla on WPS: Over 300 illegal activities by China in 2024

Interior and Local Government Secretary Juanito Victor "Jonvic" Remulla Jr. on Thursday said China had conducted at least 348 "illegal, coercive, aggressive, and deceptive activities" in the West Philippine Sea from January to November of this year.

In his report during the 2nd Joint National Peace and Order Council (NPOC) - Regional Peace and Order Councils (RPOCs) meeting for 2024, Remulla said an average of 336 Chinese vessels were spotted daily in the West Philippine Sea in October 2024.

During the meeting, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. also reiterated the need for adherence to non-escalatory approaches in the West Philippine Sea.

He earlier said Philippine Navy warships need not be deployed to the West Philippine Sea despite China's continuing aggression and use of its own navy in the contested waters.

"We are not at war," the President had said. "We don't need Navy warships. All we are doing is resupplying our fishermen, protecting our territorial rights."

The Philippines has never been an agent of escalation in the West Philippine Sea, according to Marcos.

Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea, a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual shipborne commerce, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei.

In 2016, an international arbitration tribunal in Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines over China's claims in the South China Sea, saying that it had "no legal basis."

China has not recognized the decision. — VDV, GMA Integrated News