The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is looking to resume its rotation and reprovision (RORE) mission to Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) within the next two weeks to ensure that troops stationed at BRP Sierra Madre will have enough supplies.

Col. Medel Aguilar, AFP spokesperson, said that the military will strategize how the mission will be carried out this time especially after the water cannon attack by China Coast Guard (CCG) against its supply boats over the weekend.

“We need to resupply them within the next two weeks but we will see how we are going to do it dahil sa nangyayari ngayon sa West Philippine Sea (because of what’s happening in the West Philippine Sea),” Aguilar said in a radio interview with dzBB on Tuesday, August 8.

“Our objective is always to make sure that our troops there have the food, drinks and other supplies they need to do their task there,” he added.

Last August 5, a total of 11 Chinese coast guard, navy, and maritime militia vessels performed dangerous maneuvers and even fired water cannon on two AFP-manned boats and two Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels acting as its escorts, BRP Malapascua and BRP Cabra, while delivering supplies to troops onboard the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal.

Because of this, only one of the two supply boats managed to successfully bring the supplies to the troops at BRP Sierra Madre, the AFP’s outpost in Ayungin Shoal.

“Kalahati lang po kasi ‘yung naunload na supply so kulang po ‘yun (Only half of the supply was unloaded so it’s not enough),” Aguilar said.

The AFP spokesman said the upcomming mission will still be supported by the PCG.

“Bawat mission po na ginagawa natin, nandyan po ang pagpaplano so sa mga nangyayari ngayon syempre titingnan natin kung paano maisasagawa nang matagumpay at ligtas (Every mission that we do, we always plan and so with what’s happening right now, we will see how we can execute it successfully and safely),” Aguilar said.

The CCG justified its aggression as it claimed that the Philippine vessels were “trespassing” into Chinese waters. 

However, Ayungin Shoal is located at approximately 105 nautical miles (195 km) from Palawan, or within the Philippines’ 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ). 

A 2016 arbitral ruling also rejected China’s excessive claims in the South China Sea, including the WPS.

Despite the cannon attack, the morale of the Filipino soldiers and the coast guardians remained “high”.

“We are always prepared for all eventualities and therefore the morale remains high,” Aguilar said.

“For the Philippine Coast Guard crew of BRP Malapascua and BRP Cabra, their morale remains high. You still have the commitment of the Philippine Coast Guard that despite the danger, despite the dangerous maneuvers that the China Coast Guard would always do every time there is a resupply mission in Ayungin, the Philippine Coast Guard will still carry out the mission and support the Armed Forces of the Philippines,” Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for WPS, added.