Protecting PH sovereignty...

of an invasion would not be so high.

The bottom line is, no matter our position, a war breaking out in Taiwan is not in our country’s interest, and that preventing one from happening by being part of an alliance to deter China from starting one would be. Taking this a step further, has there been any consideration about our security position if Taiwan were to fall under the complete control of China? Such scenario would mean China’s land border would only be around 400 kilometers from Batanes instead of 3,000 km away as it is now.So aside from the WPS, we now have to closely monitor and patrol our northeast and eastern maritime domain, which includes the Benham Rise. Recall that a few years back, Chinese ships were surveying the area, which could be another flashpoint in Philippine-China relations. Therefore, if we are to talk about protecting our country’s sovereignty and territory, both on land and at sea, we need to take all possible scenarios and factors into account, and act according to our country and people’s best interest.

Speaking of our country’s and people’s best interest, would the status quo of regular harassment of our fishermen and the Coast Guard, and the normalization of these violations of the 2016 arbitral ruling in our favor, be acceptable?

Independently building our defense posture is ideal, but how many generations will it take for us to achieve military parity with China, if that is even possible? In the meantime, we have to use all means necessary to protect our sovereignty and territory. Of course, doing so comes with risks, but sticking our head in the sand and hoping we’d be left alone would be worse. By the time we stick our head out of the ground, we’d realize we have already lost control of part of our territory.

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The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.

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Moira G. Gallaga served three Philippine presidents as presidential protocol officer, and was posted as a diplomat at the Philippine consulate general in Los Angeles, and the Philippine Embassy in Washington.