Metro Manila, Philippines — Another record high in the number of Chinese vessels lingering in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippine Navy said on Tuesday, Sept. 24.
In a press conference, Navy spokesman for WPS Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad said that as the weather cleared, Chinese vessels began to swarm the maritime area from Sept. 17 to 23.
“Historically, each time there is a weather disturbance, the numbers go down and they come back after the weather disturbance. It so happened that last week it was 157. We had a weather disturbance. They cleared the area. They came back from 157 to 251,” said Trinidad.
The navy official said there were 28 Chinese coast guard ships, 16 People’s Liberation Army Navy warships, 204 Chinese maritime militia vessels and three Chinese research and survey vessels.
The vessels have been spotted in Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal) and Escoda Shoal (Sabina Shoal).
The navy official said the mere presence of Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea – or the portion of the South China Sea within the country’s exclusive economic zone – is illegal and has been a constant cause for alarm.
“The presence of the maritime militia, the PLA Navy and the Chinese Coast Guard have been illegal since we started monitoring them. The alarm had already been raised 25 years ago when they started reclamation activities or they started the illegal presence in the West Philippine Sea,” said Trinidad.
