President Marcos has found it "unfortunate" that provocative, unilateral and illegal actions continue to happen in the West Philippine Sea "despite the clarity" provided by international law.

Speaking at a forum organized by international think tank Lowly Institute in Melbourne on Monday, March 4, the President said the actions that are infringing upon the Philippines' sovereignty and sovereign rights "obstruct our path towards" the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)'s vision of the South China Sea as a sea of peace, stability, and of prosperity.

That's the reason why he said Manila will continue to engage with Beijing, which mainly conducts aggressive operations in the whole South China Sea, "bilaterally and through ASEAN-led mechanisms to address our differences at sea."

Marcos said the Philippines is determined to make its bilateral mechanisms with China work and leverage its bilateral mechanisms with other claimant states towards the peaceful management of disputes.

"As a country committed to the cause of peace and the peaceful settlement of disputes, the Philippines continues to tread the path of dialogue and diplomacy despite these serious difficulties," he said.

"Our adherence to the 2002 ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Chinese in the South China Sea remains steadfast and so is our commitment to working with ASEAN and China towards an effective and substantive Code of Conduct that finds its moorings in UNCLOS and respects the interest of all stakeholders, including Australia," he added.

But Marcos believed such efforts would not be presumed in a vacuum. He said a conducive environment where tensions are effectively managed is crucial to the success of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea negotiations.

"We shall never surrender even a square inch of our territory and our maritime jurisdiction," he said.

"In this regard, we are upgrading the capabilities of our Coast Guard, pursuing the modernization of our Armed Forces, and earlier this year, I approved the updated acquisition plan of the Armed Forces of the Philippines," he added.

He said the Philippine forces must be able to guarantee all Filipino nationals, Philippine corporations, and those authorized by the Philippine government the "unimpeded and peaceful exploration and exploitation of all natural resources in the areas where we have jurisdiction including and especially our exclusive economic zone in accordance with international law."