THE Philippine Navy (PN) said it is stronger than before in defending the country’s borders and facing aggression in security hotspots particularly the West Philippine Sea (WPS). “Little by little we upgraded. For the past 10 to 15 years, it’s not just the Navy but also the air force and the army,” Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, PN’s spokesman for the WPS said at a forum over the weekend. “I can say we are stronger now than yesterday. The Department of [National] Defense has the details of it,” he added. Trinidad said the country has gained the ability to sink ships. “We have shown that during exercises, in Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) we launched missiles. From land and sea and air. And our targets are ships,” Trinidad said. He reiterated that the Armed Forces of the Philippines has patrol commands not only in the WPS but also in the country’s northern borders.