West Philippine Sea: AFP tracks 35 Chinese ships across key features

MANILA, Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Tuesday said it monitored a total of 35 Chinese vessels in key features of the West Philippine Sea this week.

AFP spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad (res.), said the ships were tracked from May 4 to 11 across four key features: Panatag Shoal, Ayungin Shoal, Escoda Shoal, and Pag-asa Island.

Most of these vessels were present in Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, with 17 vessels—nine China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels and eight People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) warships. The shoal is about 220 kilometers from Luzon in the West Philippine Sea, well within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ). It has remained under Chinese control since a 2012 standoff with the Philippine Navy.

READ: West PH Sea: Navy monitors 62 Chinese vessels in April

Ayungin Shoal saw seven vessels: one PLAN ship and six CCG vessels. The low-tide elevation is located 194 km off Palawan.

Escoda Shoal followed with five vessels: three PLAN ships and two CCG vessels. It lies about 195 km west of Palawan.

Six vessels were also monitored around Pag-asa Island, composed of one PLAN ship and eight CCG vessels. The island is about 528 km west of Palawan.

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China claims nearly all of the South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea, waters in the western portion of the country’s 370-kilometer EEZ.

Beijing continues to ignore a 2016 ruling by an international arbitral tribunal that nullified its claims and upheld Manila’s sovereign rights over these waters. /dl