Manila, Jan. 20 -- A ranking naval official on Tuesday said that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), along with the Philippine Navy (PN), is more than capable of protecting the newly discovered major natural gas reservoir in the Malampaya gas field off the Palawan coast.

"Monitoring is not about numbers; it is about capability. The PN-the AFP as a whole has the capability to monitor Malampaya East-1 (MAE-1), it being five kilometers adjacent to the Malampaya Project," PN spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad said when asked by the Philippine News Agency on whether they are capable of protecting this latest energy discovery of the country against hostile intruders.

He added the unit tasked to s...