(Radio Free Asia) The outgoing president spoke out during the commissioning of a Coast Guard “multi-role response vessel.”

The Philippines cannot afford war with China, outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte told Filipino coast guard personnel in what could be his final policy statement on the South China Sea issue, after Manila filed fresh diplomatic protests over Chinese boats in disputed waters.

With a few weeks left in his presidency, Duterte made the remark during a ceremony on Sunday to commission the BRP Melchora Aquino, the latest addition to the Philippine Coast Guard’s fleet. The so-called “multi-role response vessel” will help the force patrol the Philippine archipelago’s vast shorelines and deter Chinese incursions into waters claimed by Manila, officials said.

“We cannot afford fighting with China. We cannot win and we will lose and the population will suffer,” he said, according to an official transcript of his speech released on Monday.