‘What is ours will remain ours’: Navy vows no repeat of Scarborough fiasco

PCG Fleet’s largest maritime assets, the BRP Teresa Magbanua (MRRV-9701), will remain stationed at Escoda (Sabina) Shoal. —photo from the PCG

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines vowed to sustain its presence in Escoda (Sabina) Shoal lest the repeat of Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal fiasco would occur there.

Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, made the remark as China Coast Guard’s (CCG) so-called “monster ship” maintains persistent presence there.

Latest available data on CCG’s 12,000-ton ship shows that it is only about 500 meters away from PCG’s BRP Teresa Magbanua, according to SeaLight director and West Philippine Sea monitor Ray Powell.

READ: China ‘Monster’ intimidating PCG into leaving shoal, says spokesperson

“We have to ensure that what is ours will remain ours,” Trinidad told reporters in an ambush interview.

Trinidad noted that there is an increase of Navy vessels in the West Philippines Sea “past six months to one year” but did not further elaborate.

“Almost all of our capital ships are already being assigned or doing routine patrols in the West Philippine Sea, not only because of the monster ship,” he noted.

READ: China’s ‘monster ship’ staying near PCG vessel in West Philippine Sea

Longest-deployed PCG asset

BRP Teresa Magbanua was deployed in Escoda Shoal on April 16 to become the longest-deployed PCG asset in the West Philippine Sea.

The lead ship of her class of patrol vessels under the PCG, the BRP Teresa Magbanua is also the biggest ship in its fleet with a width and length of 97 meters and 12 meters, respectively.

China’s gigantic patrol cutter looms over the PCG’s flagship vessel. CCG’s 5901 is 165 meters long and 22 meters wide to become the largest coast guard ship in the world.

It returned to the West Philippine Sea a few days after leaving the country’s exclusive economic zone on June 27, when it concluded what experts call “intrusive” 10-day patrol in Manila’s 12 maritime features to reinforce Beijing’s “ten-dash line” claim. It departed from Hainan Island on July 1 before arriving off Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal on July 3. Also on July 3, the giant Chinese ship passed by Mischief Reef before heading to nearby Escoda Shoal a few hours later, anchoring there until now.

However, Trinidad said the navy does not consider the face-off between PCG’s and CCG’s biggest ships as a “stand-off” just like what happened in Scarborough Shoal.

In 2012, Manila and Beijing had a tense standoff over Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, which led to the latter having effective control of its lagoon to date.

A year later, Manila lodged an arbitration case against Beijing after this incident which led to a historic 2016 arbitral award that effectively rejected the latter’s sweeping claims in the West Philippine Sea.