West PH Sea: Chinese ship off Zambales leaves after PCG challenge

Sealight’s satellite image of Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal as of Monday. PHOTO FROM SEALIGHT

MANILA, Philippines — A China Coast Guard (CCG) ship off Zambales has departed after being shadowed and radio challenged by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).

Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, said BRP Cabra ordered CCG-4305 to leave the area “despite being outmatched in size” through “firm” radio challenges while shadowing the Chinese ship.

BRP Cabra is a 44-meter multi-role response vessel while CCG-4305 is a 134-meter ship equipped with a 76mm main gun and two 30mm close-in weapon systems. 

READ: PCG: BRP Cabra takes over to challenge CCG vessels near Zambales coast

SeaLight director Ray Powell on Saturday monitored CCG-4305 as close as 35 nautical miles (NM) from the country’s coastline just outside Subic Bay.

CCG’s presence near the country’s 12-NM territorial waters is “absolutely” intentional, aimed at asserting China’s 10-dash-line claim, Powell told the Inquirer on Monday via X (formerly Twitter).

He added that CCG-4305 began returning to Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal on Sunday and was already within its vicinity as of Monday.

Tarriela said the BRP Cabra also continued its routine maritime patrol in Panatag Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc, eventually departing the area, which was 25 NM away from the vessel as of Monday, according to Powell.

READ: PCG ships in ‘David vs Goliath’ face-off in West Philippine Sea

Meanwhile, at least four CCG vessels are within Panatag Shoal’s vicinity as of Monday, according to the satellite image provided by Powell.

Since China’s effective takeover of Panatag in 2012, it has enforced what experts describe as “exclusion zone enforcement,” restricting access to Filipino fisherfolk.

Beijing claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, but Manila elevated the dispute to an international tribunal, which in 2016 ruled in favor of the Philippines’ sovereign rights.

The arbitral tribunal also declared the Panatag Shoal a traditional fishing ground for the Philippines, China and Vietnam. 

In refusal to recognize this ruling, China continued its aggressive actions there, the most notable of which occurred on Aug. 11 which led to the collision of its coast guard vessel and navy warship.

Almost a month after the collision,  Beijing declared Panatag Shoal as an environmental nature reserve, a unilateral move condemned by Manila and Washington. /dl