Navy ready to respond as Chinese vessels spotted near PH civilian ship

MISSION CONTINUES Atin Ito’s third civilian mission to the West Philippine Sea, featuring a concert at sea off Palawan province, will serve as a platform for artists, musicians and fisherfolk from different countries to come together and promote peace, cultural exchange and regional solidarity through music and the arts. —SCREENGRAB FROM ATIN ITO VIDEO

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Navy assured that it is ready to respond as Chinese vessels were spotted near the Filipino ship carrying “Atin Ito” volunteers heading to Pag-asa Island.

“‘Atin Ito’ is a civil society effort. They have done all the coordination with the proper government agencies prior to the conduct of their activity. We fully support them,” Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Rear Adm. Roy Trinidad said at a Camp Aguinaldo briefing on Tuesday.

“The Philippine Navy, the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) and even other government agencies in the maritime domain are prepared to respond to support anything that they would need while conducting a concert at sea,” Trinidad added.

T/S Felix Oca Captain Jorge Dela Cruz reported seeing two Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) vessels near their ship at around 7:40 a.m. on Tuesday.

At 8:32 a.m., one of the CCG vessels issued a radio challenge against the civilian ship and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) boats escorting it.

“So far, there have been no indications that there would be any aggressive action conducted against them,” Trinidad said.

“However, this will not negate the fact that the actions of the instruments of the Chinese Communist Party have a pattern of aggression and coercive maneuvers in the West Philippine Sea,” the Navy spokesperson added.

Trinidad further said he had yet to receive more details to identify the two CCG vessels.

READ: ‘Atin Ito ship to turn back if China aggression escalates’

‘No significant increase in presence’

The T/S Felix Oca is expected to arrive in the vicinity of Pag-asa Island on Wednesday morning.

When asked if the civilian mission has driven more Chinese presence around Pag-asa Island, Trinidad said, “There’s been no significant increase. May presence pa rin doon, but no significant increase in the numbers.”

“The vicinity of Pag-asa has a normal presence of maritime militia and the coast because it is close to the Subi Reef,” he explained in a mix of Filipino and English.

READ: Atin Ito stages pre-departure sea concert aboard T/S Felix Oca

Pag-asa Island is caught in the ongoing maritime dispute between Manila and Beijing despite the 2016 Arbitral Ruling asserting the Philippines’ sovereignty over its exclusive economic zone.

The coming peace concert near Pag-asa Island is “Atin Ito’s” third civilian mission to the West Philippine Sea, after a mission to Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas) in 2023 and another to Panatag Shoal (Scarborough) in 2024.

Both previous missions were met with harassment from Chinese vessels.

The third mission was sent off with a concert on Monday aboard the T/S Felix Oca just off Palawan. /jpv