Diplomacy first: Philippines cannot challenge Beijing militarily over S. China Sea disputes, says Duterte

The Philippines president said on Monday that he had no choice but to treat disputes in the South China Sea as diplomatic endeavors because the alternative was to go to war with China.

Rodrigo Duterte defended his government’s decision not to press a 2016 decision by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which went in favor of the Philippines in a case against China, Reuters reported.

During his annual address to the nation, the Philippines leader said China was in possession of territory that his country did not have the capability to challenge militarily, adding that “we cannot go to war.”