Benedict Maravilla

The Philippine Coast Guard PCG said that the recent loitering of the China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel 5901 or the ‘monster ship’ is questionable and is different in terms of distance and behavior from the ones that China deployed before.

Photo Courtesy of Reuters.

In an interview on Jan. 15, PCG Spokesperson for WPS Commodore Jay Tarriela explained that the recent presence of the monster ship was seen at about 60–70 nautical miles off the coast of Zambales province, the nearest among China’s deployments so far.

“This particular deployment is questionable because this is the first time that the China Coast Guard deployed that close in our exclusive economic zone,” Tarriela said.

He revealed that the vessel has been staying for almost two weeks and that it just kept loitering around the area at a ‘very slow’ pace.

“They have stayed there for a certain period of time already…This has never happened before,” the spokesperson said. “It is moving but at a very slow pace and pretty much concentrated in only those paths.”

Tarriela said that China is not exercising the freedom of navigation, but rather is carrying out an ‘illegitimate’ maritime law enforcement in the WPS.

“The Chinese Coast Guard is announcing it over the radio, telling our Philippine Coast Guard vessel that they are currently conducting maritime law enforcement because they have jurisdiction,” he said.

When asked about CCG’s probable motive, Tarriela said that China is normalizing its deployment in the WPS, a portion they claim to be theirs in their ‘10-dash line’.

“We would like to believe that they want to normalize the deployment for them to be able to alter the status quo saying that they have been patrolling these waters for a certain period of time,” he said.

“We would like to believe that they want to normalize the deployment for them to be able to alter the status quo saying that they have been patrolling these waters for a certain period of time,” he said.

PCG has been closely monitoring and challenging the movement of the monster ship since the onset of its presence.

As of writing, the vessel is still not leaving WPS despite calls from the Philippines to stop its deployment.