MORE than 135 vessels of the Chinese Maritime Militia (CMM) have been spotted off Julian Felipe Reef— located within the Philippine area of responsibility, said the Philippine Coast Guard on Sunday.
In a statement released Sunday, the PCG said the CMM vessels were previously estimated at 125, a significant increase from the 111 CMM ships recorded on November 13, 2023.
This comes as PCG Commandant, Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan on Saturday, December 2, 2023, deployed PCG vessels BRP Sindangan and BRP Cabra to conduct patrols near the reef which is 169 nautical miles off Palawan.
“No response was made to the radio challenges issued by the PCG to the CMM vessels which [are] now estimated to have grown (to) more than 135 vessels dispersed and scattered within Julian Felipe Reef,” the PCG said.
Located 175 nautical miles west of Bataraza in Palawan, the Julian Felipe Reef is considered a low-tide elevation within the territorial sea of relevant high-tide features in the Kalayaan Island Group.
“The PCG maintains its unwavering commitment to safeguarding maritime security, safety, and the marine environment in the course of protecting the territorial integrity, sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction of the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea,” the PCG assured.
The Philippines sue China and won in 2016 as it secured a landmark ruling by an international tribunal invalidating Beijing’s massive South China Sea claims and upheld the Philippine ownership over the West Philippine Sea.
