PCG ships blocked by Chinese vessels during Sabina resupply – report

This handout photo grabbed from a video released by the Philippine Coast Guard on June 7, 2024 shows Philippine Coast Guard divers and marine scientists surveying part of Sabina shoal.   (Photo by Handout / Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) / AFP)

MANILA, Philippines — Two Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) ships were blocked on Monday by several China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels during the resupply mission in Escoda (Sabina) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.

The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported that BRP Cabra and BRP Cape Engaño tried to resupply the BRP Teresa Magbanua in Escoda Shoal.

The report stated that the two PCG vessels were blocked by CCG for a few hours.

On Sunday (Aug. 25), CCG vessels blasted water cannons against a Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessel.

Last Aug. 19, BRP Cape Engaño and BRP Bacagay were subjected to what the PCG deemed as aggressive maneuvers that damaged both ships.

READ: PH vessels rammed, harassed by China anew in West Philippine Sea – Malaya 

Beijing’s actions in Escoda Shoal come as Manila maintains a persistent presence there.

BRP Teresa Magbanua, the biggest PCG vessel, has been sent there since April 16, becoming the longest-deployed asset in the West Philippine Sea as a response to suspected reclamation activities around the shoal.

Beijing asserts sovereignty in almost the entire South China Sea, including most of the West Philippine Sea, even if such a claim has been effectively invalidated by the arbitral award issued in July 2016.

The landmark ruling stemmed from a case filed by Manila in 2013, a year after its tense standoff with Beijing over Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, whose lagoon is now under the latter’s effective control.

Recently, the Chinese publication Global Times also claimed that the Philippines is planning to send another vessel to build a “forward deployment base” in Escoda Shoal.

Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, said such fears are “unfounded.”

READ: China’s fear of PH base in Sabina Shoal ‘unfounded’ — PCG