The joint patrols the United States has with the Philippines show that the country is not alone in defending its territorial rights in the West Philippine Sea, a maritime law expert said.

It can be recalled that the two countries conducted their third maritime cooperative activity in the South China Sea last Friday.

In a television interview, Raymond Powell, Sealight Director at Stanford University's Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation, said: “China wants to label anything that involves any power that is from outside the region of China as interference. But the US-Philippine alliance goes back to 1951. It’s not new that the US and the Philippines are allies.”

“Joint patrols with the Philippines is one way that the US can affirm its alliance commitments and remind China that the Philippines doesn’t stand alone,'' he said.

Powell said it is likely there will be more joint patrols. ''We’ve already talked about Australia and Japan. I think that the future of joint patrols is very promising.” Jaspearl Tan/DMS