By Priam Nepomuceno
MANILA – A ranking Philippine Navy (PN) official on Tuesday said a total of 28 Chinese warships and coast guard vessels were monitored and detected in four key West Philippine Sea (WPS) features in the first part of April.
In a press briefing at Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, PN spokesperson for the WPS Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad said these ships were detected in Bajo de Masinloc, Ayungin Shoal, Escoda Shoal and Pag-asa Island during their April 5 to 12 monitoring period.
For Bajo de Masinloc, the PN official said that 10 China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels were monitored. At the Ayungin Shoal, three warships from the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) were spotted, along with six CCG ships.
Meanwhile, one PLAN vessel and three CCG ships were monitored near Escoda Shoal, and one Chinese warship and four Chinese coast guard vessels were spotted near Pag-asa Island.
Last March, a total of 90 Chinese warships and coast guard vessels were recorded in the four above-mentioned key WPS features.
“Specific to the WPS, we have documented the persistent and unauthorized presence of the PLAN and CCG. For this month, a total of 90 different vessels were monitored across (four) key features,” Trinidad earlier said.
Trinidad said the Chinese vessels spotted in these areas in March can be broken down into the following:
- Bajo de Masinloc: 49 vessels (17 PLAN, 32 CCG);
- Pag-asa: 15 vessels (four PLAN, 11 CCG);
- Ayungin Shoal: 14 vessels (four PLAN, 10 CCG);
- Escoda Shoal: 12 vessels (seven PLAN, five CCG). (PNA)
