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The 165-metre Chinese coastguard vessel with bow number 5901, nicknamed “The Monster”, was seen on Friday 93km (50 nautical miles) off the Scarborough Shoal, a highly contested maritime feature, accompanied by another 102-metre long coastguard ship. Beijing refers to the shoal as Huangyan Island while Manila has named it Panatag Shoal.
The escalation at Sabina Shoal was due to the “long-time” presence of the Philippine coastguard vessel BRP Teresa Magbanua and “its intention to occupy the place”, China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a regular briefing on Monday, reiterating calls for Manila to remove the ship.
Initially announced in 2012, the Philippine Navy’s modernisation plan aimed to acquire a robust fleet, including six anti-air warfare frigates and three attack submarines. Yet, as of this year, it only operates two modern frigates – the BRP José Rizal and BRP Antonio Luna – alongside a handful of other vessels, leaving it vulnerable in a region fraught with tension.
General Romeo Brawner Jnr, the country’s military chief, said on Thursday that the Philippines wanted to procure the Mid-Range Capability (MRC), or Typhon, missile system as part of Manila’s strategy to focus more on external defence.
“Regardless of [whether it’s an] immediate or direct threat, we are going to be affected,” warned Ramon Beleno III, head of the political science and history department at Ateneo De Davao University in the Philippines. “Even if they just hit Taiwan, because of our proximity … we will be a target.”
Filipinos are increasingly being blocked from their traditional fishing grounds at Scarborough Shoal by Beijing’s enforcement of its territorial claims in the South China Sea, with new restrictions and aggressive patrolling creating a potential flashpoint over fishing rights and national sovereignty.
Shultz, 24, had been charged with conspiring to transmit national defence information, exporting defence-related technical data without a licence, and bribing a public official, after selling sensitive military documents to a foreign national believed to be associated with the Chinese government. He reportedly received at least 14 payments totalling US$42,000.
Manila should not place hopes on expanding a provisional arrangement with Beijing over its resupply missions to the Second Thomas Shoal to cover the entire West Philippine Sea, observers warn, as such a move could lead to China imposing its dominance in the disputed waters and ambiguous territorial boundaries.
Authorities in the Philippines are investigating claims that a Manila-based foreign journalist could be a Chinese agent, an allegation that analysts say reflects an ongoing campaign targeting the Southeast Asian country through covert operations.