The Philippines will continue upholding its sovereign rights and preserving its territorial integrity, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. stressed during his second State of the Nation Address on Monday afternoon.
Marcos said the government will continue pushing constant dialogue and diplomatic approach to resolute any eventualities that would compromise national security.
“We will protect our sovereign rights and preserve our territorial integrity, in defense of rules-based international order,” Marcos said, referring to an international ruling in favor of the country’s sovereign rights over the West Philippine Sea.
The President also emphasized the importance of unity and social cohesion among the Filipino people, assuring that the Philippines “will not lose any of its territory.”
“Our journey to progress requires not only unity and social cohesion amongst our people. It is also imperative that our nation remains intact and inviolable, our sovereignty preserved,” he said.
Following his earlier pronouncement that the country “will not give an inch of its territory,” Marcos made a sudden change in the leadership of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Marcos appointed former military chief Gen. Andres Centino as the first-ever Presidential Adviser on the West Philippine Sea. Centino was replaced by Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., the former Commanding General of the Philippine Army.
Prior to this, the AFP made a commitment to strengthening its military presence in the WPS.
“The interest of the Philippines and the Filipino people will be given priority in the government’s foreign policy,” Marcos emphasized during his SONA.