MANILA, Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said on Tuesday that it was supportive of the Philippine Coast Guard’s (PCG) initiative to invite government officials to see missions in the West Philippine Sea (WPS). “First and foremost, the AFP supports the initiative of the Philippine Coast Guard and other government agencies to invite senior government officials to see what is out there in the West Philippine Sea either by air or by sea,” Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, AFP spokesman for the WPS told reporters. The support comes following an invitation by Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesman, to Sen. Rodante Marcoleta to participate in a maritime domain awareness flight over the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) after he suggested giving up the controversial island group because it lay beyond the country’s 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Trinidad said the invitation to government officials to visit the disputed islands was something that had been done before. Even media personalities were regularly invited to cover drills in the area where Chinese maritime forces usually appeared and performed coercive and aggressive actions. The KIG is part of the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. Located 280 nautical miles from the baseline, the KIG forms part of the Municipality of Kalayaan in Palawan and comprises more than 130 features, including seven islands and two reefs.