Philippines’ Duterte orders occupation of South China Sea islands

‘Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the Philippines military to occupy and fortify islands in the South China Sea, which the Southeast Asian republic lays claim to, in order to make a “strong point” amid its territorial dispute with China.
“It looks like everyone is making a grab for the islands there. So we better live on those that are still unoccupied. What’s ours now, we claim it and make a strong point from there,” Duterte told journalists at a press briefing that followed his visit to a military base located in the Philippine western Palawan province, Reuters reports.
“We tried to be friends with everybody but we have to maintain our jurisdiction now, at least the areas under our control,” he added, as cited by AP. The president ordered the occupation of between nine and ten islands and shoals of the disputed Spratly archipelago located in the South China Sea, the largest of which is the Pagasa Island also known as Thitu.’
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