Over 100 Chinese vessels still in West Philippine Sea — PCG

File photo taken in 2021 shows some of the Chinese ships at Juan Felipe Reef off
Bataraza, Palawan.  (REUTERS)

MANILA, Philippines — Over a week since they were last spotted, more than 100 suspected Chinese maritime militia (CMM) ships and two China Coast Guard vessels remain in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said on Wednesday.

The CMM vessels have been staying in the vicinity of Julian Felipe Reef since April 22 while the two China Coast Guard vessels remain in Ayungin Shoal since April 23, according to PCG spokesperson for West Philippine Sea affairs Commodore Jay Tarriela.

READ: More than 100 Chinese maritime militia vessels, warship still in West Philippine Sea — PCG

“Based on our monitoring, the Chinese Coast Guard vessels remain in Ayungin Shoal, these are the China Coast Guard 5201 and China Coast Guard 4202,” Tarriela said in a public briefing.

“With regards to the Chinese maritime militia that we’re able to document last April 22, these more than 100 [vessels], the number still remain; there are still more than 100 Chinese maritime militia in Julian Felipe [Reef],” he added.

Last April 23, China Coast Guard vessel 5201 and China Coast Guard vessel 4202 intercepted BRP Malapascua and BRP Malabrigo, the two vessels which were conducting maritime patrols in the vicinity of Ayungin Shoal, according to Tarriela.

Tarriela said that Chinese Coast Guard vessel 5201 executed dangerous maneuvers near BRP Malapascua, “maintaining a perilous distance of only 50 yards,” while the China Coast Guard vessel 4202 also persistently tailed BRP Malabrigo at a distance of 700 yards, closely monitoring its movements.

China’s actions were anchored on its assertion that it owns almost all of the areas in the South China Sea, including parts of the West Philippinr Sea

The Philippines, under the administration of then President Benigno Aquino III in 2013, challenged before the United Nations-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) China’s claim that it owns more than 80 percent of the South China Sea, which included waters in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

In 2016, the PCA invalidated China’s claim to almost the entire South China Sea.

The tribunal ruled that China’s claim had no basis in international law and that it had violated the Philippines’ sovereign right to fish and explore resources in the West Philippine Sea, the waters within the country’s 370-kilometer EEZ in the South China Sea.

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