The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Wednesday said it has deployed its vessel BRP Melchora Aquino after monitoring China Coast Guard (CCG) 5303 ship near Lubang Island.
PCG spokesperson for the West Philippines Sea (WPS) Commodore Jay Tarriela said PCG commandant Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan ordered the deployment.
“In response to the incursive presence of the CCG in Lubang Island, the commandant of the PCG Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan has also deployed the BRP Melchora Aquino, the sister ship of Teresa Magbanua. That is 97 meters as well,” Tarriela said at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum.
CCG 5303 was spotted near Lubang Island in Mindoro on Sunday afternoon while conducting an “intrusive patrol,” former US Air Force official and Defence Attaché Ray Powell said on Monday.
“At 16:20 yesterday the 135-meter China Coast Guard 5303 arrived 60 nm west of the Philippines’ Lubang Island & is now conducting an intrusive patrol at that location,” he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
The Philippine Navy has confirmed the report.
In an update on Wednesday, Powell said the Chinese vessel got closer to the Philippine coastline as near as 35 to 40 nautical miles from northern Palawan near El Nido.
#China Coast Guard 5303 ended 2 days of loitering activity off of Lubang Island yesterday, but is extending its intrusive patrol (https://t.co/XMHhupl45m) even closer to the #Philippines‘ coastline. It is now moving ~35-40 nm from northern Palawan near El Nido. https://t.co/81Tn2gyrcp pic.twitter.com/abulOvYtSo
— Ray Powell (@GordianKnotRay) July 16, 2024
Tarriela also said that the Chinese vessel was moving towards Palawan.
“However, since last night, we also tracked its movement that it’s now moving away towards Palawan. So it’s no longer there in Lubang Island,” Tarriela said.
Meanwhile, the PCG also said that CCG 5901, the world’s largest coast guard ship known as “The Monster,” is still anchored in Escoda Shoal.
“I would like to confirm that as of 7:30 in the morning, the last image that I got from our Coast Guard personnel, the CCG monster ship remains to be inside the Escoda Shoal. It never departed and is still anchored there,” said Terriela.
Tensions continue amid China’s massive claim in the South China Sea (SCS) including the portion the Philippines refers to as the West Philippine Sea.
The SCS is a conduit for more than $3 trillion in annual ship commerce. Aside from the Philippines, China has overlapping claims in the area with Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Brunei.
In 2016, an international arbitration tribunal in Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines over China’s claims in the South China Sea, saying that it had “no legal basis.”
China has not recognized the decision.
–VAL, GMA Integrated News
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