Asked if the Philippines was powerless against China, Panelo said nobody has been able to enforce the July 2016 arbitral ruling on the South China Sea. The United Nations-backed tribunal had ruled in favor of Manila, invalidating Beijing's historic nine-dash line claim over the South China Sea, part of which is the West Philippine Sea. Beijing had been refusing to acknowledge the arbitration, claiming indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea. Despite the victory from the arbitral ruling, the Duterte administration decided to set it aside to pursue stronger ties with Beijing. In an ambush interview with reporters, Duterte acknowledged that Beijing had control over the disputed features upon expressing opposition to military exercises in the South China Sea.

Source: Philippine Star March 25, 2019 07:43 UTC