MANILA — The Senate will find the "right venues" to ensure that the country's sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea are protected, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva said on Saturday.

Villanueva said the Senate would have a caucus on Monday to "iron out the issues and find the right venues and exhaust all avenues to ensure that our rights are protected."

• Marcos doubts Senate resolution on West PH Sea will reach UN

This comes after Senator Risa Hontiveros recently filed a Senate resolution seeking to urge the Department of Foreign Affairs to elevate to the United Nations China's actions in the disputed waters, believing it can complement the country's arbitral win at the Hague.

"The Senate is always ready to stand up and protect the country’s sovereignty and sovereign rights," Villanueva said in a statement.

"The Senate, led by Senate President Migz Zubiri, is an institution that believes in consensus and collective wisdom. Together, we will continue to find ways to have peace and stability in the West Philippine Sea," he added.

The Senate, he said, would not be "mere spectators and allow our rights to be trampled upon."

• Cayetano blocks Hontiveros' move to escalate China's aggression before UN
• China's latest sea aggression a 'case of international gaslighting' - Hontiveros

Senators, Villanueva noted, would also coordinate with President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. so they could design strategies effective for the cause.

"We will continue to work closely with the... Executive department in coming up with an appropriate and effective strategy, both short-term response and long-term solutions, to protect our sovereignty and ensure that our win in the arbitral court in 2016 is respected," he said.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri earlier said he was confident that Hontiveros' resolution would pass the Senate but admitted that its wording could possibly change.

But Marcos, Jr. doubted that the Senate resolution would translate to action before the United Nations General Assembly.

Marcos Jr. said the UN talks to governments and not to "parts of government."

National Security Adviser Eduardo Año, for his part, said there are other ways to address China's incursions in the West Philippine Sea without elevating it before the UN.

Beijing claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, including the Spratly Islands, ignoring an international ruling that the assertion has no legal basis.

The Philippines earlier this year accused China of causing a near-crash with a coast guard ship and pointing a military-grade laser at another vessel.

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