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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.
In a press briefing on Tuesday, navy spokesman Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad told reporters, “I would not like to speculate on the possible security impact of China taking control of the Sabina Shoal. Nevertheless, we are prepared and we have our contingency plans.”
The Philippines has been incensed by what it saw as a dangerous manoeuvre by two Chinese aircraft, which it said dropped flares in the path of its military aircraft while conducting a routine patrol over the contested shoal on Thursday.
Derek Grossman is a senior defense analyst at the think tank RAND Corp. in Santa Monica, California, and an adjunct professor in the practice of political science and international relations at the University of Southern California. He formerly served as an intelligence adviser at the Pentagon.
The compensation that the Southeast Asian nation is seeking is just for the property damage and does not yet cover the injury to the sailor, Brawner said during a briefing in Manila.
The Philippines has bolstered its presence in the South China Sea by deploying a navy warship to assert its sovereignty and counter alleged Chinese reclamation activities, while it shores up surveillance capabilities with a space technology partnership with the United States.