China's 'Monster Ship' Stirs Tensions in Philippine Waters

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported that China's largest coastguard vessel has entered Manila's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, creating tensions between the two nations. The incident follows previous disputes and calls for restoring trust and better managing maritime conflicts.

The Philippine Coast Guard announced on Saturday that China's largest coastguard vessel has anchored in Manila's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, apparently to intimidate its smaller neighbor. The China coastguard's 165-meter 'monster ship' made its way into the territory on July 2, according to PCG spokesperson Jay Tarriela.

Tarriela revealed that the PCG warned the Chinese vessel of its location within the Philippine's EEZ and questioned its intentions. He described the act as intimidation on China's part, stressing that the Philippines would neither pull out nor be intimidated by the presence of the Chinese ship.

Efforts to obtain comments from China's embassy in Manila and its foreign ministry were unsuccessful, as they did not immediately reply. With no available contact information for China's coast guard, it remains anchored 800 yards from the PCG vessel, also deploying a small boat.

Earlier in May, the PCG had deployed a ship to deter small-scale reclamation by China at the Sabina shoal, a claim that China denied. China's extensive land reclamation in the South China Sea, including the construction of military facilities, has raised alarm in Washington and the region. Despite international arbitration ruling against China's expansive maritime claims, Beijing maintains that most of the South China Sea is its territory.

After a high-level dialogue, the Philippines and China concurred on the necessity to 'restore trust' and 'rebuild confidence' to handle maritime disputes more effectively. However, the Philippines has declined assistance from the United States, its treaty ally, despite recent tensions with China over resupply missions to troops on a contested shoal.

(With inputs from agencies.)