Philippines protests presence of ‘monster ship’ amid fears of status quo shift in South China Sea
Share:
Manila says Chinese vessels detected near disputed Scarborough shoal. The Philippines has lodged a diplomatic protest over the presence of Chinese coast guard vessels, including a “monster ship”, in its claimed exclusive economic zone, amid fears that Beijing wants to alter the status quo in the South China Sea.
The National Maritime Council said on Monday Manila “strongly opposes” the illegal presence of two Chinese coast guard vessels as well as navy helicopters in its waters off the western province of Zambales. The protest comes less than two weeks after the Philippines coast guard sailed ships to tail the CCG-5901, China’s 12,000-tonne, 541ft patrol vessel.
The CCG-5901, dubbed the “monster ship”, is three times the size of the US coast guard’s top patrol ship, the National Security Cutter, and is equipped with anti-aircraft guns and fuel storage capacities, making it suitable to undertake extended missions.
The maritime council said the Chinese vessels were detected near the disputed Scarborough shoal, which Beijing claims as its own, on 5 January and 10 January. "In view of the situation, the Philippines has filed the appropriate diplomatic protest to counter China’s recent illegal actions in the WPS," the council said in a statement.
According to the Philippines coast guard, the ship was briefly replaced by the CCG-3304, but returned over the weekend. The coast guard was actively conducting radio challenges to address the unlawful presence of the Chinese coast guard in its exclusive economic zone, spokesperson Jay Tarriela said.
