Marcos may discuss West Philippine Sea issue in Singapore forum

MARKED TERRITORY A team from the Philippine Navy plants the Philippine flag on Sandy Cay, a sandbar some 7.4 kilometers (4 nautical miles) from Pag-asa Island in the West Philippine
Sea, in this photo taken on June 25, 2022. INQUIRER / MARIANNE BERMUDEZ

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is likely to talk about issues surrounding the West Philippine Sea in his speech for the International Institute For Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.

Assistant Secretary Aileen Mendiola-Rau, of the Department of Foreign Affairs-Office of the Asian Pacific Affairs, said during a Palace briefing on Friday that the forum is a chance for the Philippines to give precise and fair information on “international strategic issues.”

“I presume for all meetings and as well as the speech of the President, his keynote address, this issue will be touched but I do not wish to preempt the statements of the President,” Mendiola-Rau replied when asked if Marcos will discuss the West Philippine Sea during his Singapore trip.

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She added: “This platform, the Philippines will have the opportunity to provide these stakeholders an important source of accurate, objective information on international strategic issues important to the region.”

Marcos is scheduled to go on a back-to-back trip to Singapore and Brunei next week.

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He will attend the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue from May 30-31 upon the invitation of former Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. He will be in Brunei from May 28-29 for a state visit upon the invitation of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.

The Philippine government previously admitted that China has launched an information drive that spreads its false claim over Philippine waters.