Philippine President BongBong Marcos ordered the military to ease off the confrontation with China, according to the Philippine military chief General Romeo Brawner. Tensions were high after a confrontation between Chinese coast guard ships stopped an effort by the Philippine Coast Guard to resupply the (intentionally grounded and aging) warship on the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea, where Manila maintains a small military force in order to claim jurisdiction over the region, which China insists is sovereign Chinese territory.