The Philippine Navy (PN) said it was closely watching a Chinese research vessel that entered the country’s archipelagic waters over the weekend.
Chinese research vessel “Lan Hai 101” was first detected navigating within the eastern waters of Palawan last Feb. 9, according to Rear Adm. Roy Vincent Trinidad, PN spokesperson for West Philippine Sea (WPS).
As of 6 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11, Trinidad said the research ship was monitored to be 17 nautical miles west, northwest of Cabra Island in Lubang, Occidental Mindoro. It was proceeding northward at a speed of 12 knots while heading to Shandong, China.
“The ship came from Port Klang in Malaysia. It was challenged on Sunday afternoon by our monitoring stations in Balabac [Palawan]. They responded. They gave their last port of call, their next port of call, the skipper's name, with 56 crew members,” Trinidad said.
Accordingly, the crew of the research vessel assured that they would continue their transit while adhering to the rights of innocent passage through the Philippine archipelagic sea lanes, and opted to exit near Coron, Palawan.
Immediately, the PN and Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) deployed its ships, BRP Andres Bonifacio (PS17) and BRP Melchora Aquino (MRRV 9702), to escort Lan Hai 101.
The admiral said that the research ship passed through the Philippines’ archipelagic sea lanes because of the adverse sea conditions and inclement weather on the western side of Palawan.
He said the ship’s transit was continuous and expeditious, meaning they did not stop or slow down, so its voyage was allowed under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
“This is the expected behavior of foreign ships from any nationality, from any country, that passes through our archipelagic waters. And we will be monitoring all of them in as much as we have the capability now and we have the Maritime Zones Act and the ASLA Law [Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act] signed already,” Trinidad said, referring to the two maritime laws signed by President Marcos Jr. last year to establish a system of sea lanes and air routes for foreign vessels and aircraft, and clarify the country’s jurisdiction over its contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone.
The Navy has heightened its vigilance against Chinese vessels passing through the country’s archipelagic sea lanes recently.
Last week, three Chinese military ships also entered the country’s archipelagic waters, prompting the PN to challenge them as their crew did not coordinate with and respond to the inquiries of the authorities.
“We have increased [our] vigilance. And this will be noted in the passage of the three PLA [People’s Liberation Army] Navy warships that we were able to track them, hand over the reports, and challenge them as they went through our ecological waters,” Trinidad said.
In the northern part of the country, the China Coast Guard (CCG) has deployed its vessels near the coast of Zambales to establish its presence in the area, which was challenged by the PCG.
President Marcos Jr. earlier admitted that the country lacks ships such as submarines, frigates, and destroyers to drive away Chinese vessels intruding into Philippine waters, particularly the "monster" ship in Zambales.
Trinidad believes that the military has other means to defend the country’s sovereignty, such as forging close ties with like-minded nations to hold joint sails or flights in the contested features under the concept of a maritime cooperative activity (MCA).
“All the MCAs are a meeting of mutual interest for countries who would like to uphold the international rules-based order, that includes the Philippines and other countries that have a stake in the Indo-Pacific region,” he said.
“Suffice it to say for the previous years, each time we have a multilateral maritime activity, there has been a noted change in the behavior, aggressive behavior of the PLA Navy, the Chinese Coast Guard and the maritime militia,” he added.