By Junex Doronio
MANILA — Following the marching order of China’s President Xi Jinping to its armed forces to coordinate preparations for military conflicts at sea, protect their country’s maritime rights and interests, and the development of their maritime economy, some 50 Chinese vessels have been spotted in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in a statement disclosed that as of 4 p.m. on Monday (11 March 2024), there were 7 China Coast Guard vessels (CCGVs), 18 Chinese maritime militia vessels (CMMVs), and 29 small Chinese fishing vessels (CFVs) in Philippine-occupied islands and features in the waterway.
“In Bajo de Masinloc, 5 CCGVs, 18 CMMVs, and 10 China CFVs. In Ayungin Shoal, 1 CCGV, 6 CFVs. In Pagasa Island, 1 CCGV, 6 CFVs. In Panatag Island, 7 CFVs,” AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said in a press briefing on Tuesday (12 March 2024).
She added that there were no significant sightings of Chinese vessels in other features.
Despite this development, Padilla said the AFP would continue its rotation and resupply (RoRe) mission to all the features in the western section of the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
“The next RoRe at Pagasa, Kota, Panatag, and Parola will be conducted in the first week of April,” she said.
Political pundits told Maharlika NuMedia that China’s claim to the South China Sea (SCS), which includes the WPS, can be traced back centuries and is embodied in their so-called nine-dash line.
However, countries that claim parts of the SCS and reject the nine-dash line have maintained that the Chinese claim encroaches onto their territory as defined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Under UNCLOS, each country has an EEZ extending 200 nautical miles (around 370km) from its coast over which it has sovereign rights.
