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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Chinese warships return to West PH Sea after brief absence in August – AFP

Chinese warships return to West PH Sea after brief absence in August – AFP

Published Sep 1, 2026 05:14 pm

At A Glance

  • The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) reported that 56 Chinese vessels, including 15 PLA-N warships, were monitored in key West Philippine Sea features in August.
  • The figure marked a rebound from the Aug. 18 to 24 weekly monitoring period when no PLA-N warships were detected, with the AFP cautioning against drawing conclusions from short-term observations.
  • The Philippine Navy tracked 18,534 vessels in the country's EEZ throughout August, including 2,545 domestic and 15,989 foreign vessels.
A People's Liberation Army-Navy (PLA-N) warship with bow number "575" is monitored operating in Bajo de Masinloc, West Philippine Sea during a maritime domain awareness (MDA) flight by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Oct. 28, 2025. (File photo: PCG)
A People's Liberation Army-Navy (PLA-N) warship with bow number "575" is monitored operating in Bajo de Masinloc, West Philippine Sea during a maritime domain awareness (MDA) flight by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Oct. 28, 2025. (File photo: PCG)
The naval fleet of China reappeared near contested features in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) following a brief disappearance last month, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) reported on Tuesday, Sept. 1.
A total of 56 vessels belonging to the People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLA-N) and the China Coast Guard (CCG) were tracked across Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough or Panatag Shoal), Escoda (Sabina) Shoal, and Pag-asa (Thitu) Island from August 1 to 31, according to AFP spokesperson for WPS retired admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad.
Breakdown figures showed 18 ships at Ayungin Shoal, including one navy vessel and 17 coast guard ships. Bajo de Masinloc hosted 23 vessels, split between nine navy warships and 14 coast guard cutters.
Escoda Shoal recorded nine vessels, consisting of four navy ships and five coast guard units while Pag-asa Island accounted for six ships, featuring one navy vessel and five coast guard vessels.
This tally marked a rebound from a previous weekly snapshot where naval monitoring recorded from August 18 to 24 showed zero Chinese warships, consisting entirely of 16 CCG ships stationed at Ayungin Shoal, Bajo de Masinloc, and Pag-asa Island.
When asked why the warships vanished temporarily during that mid-August window, Trinidad cautioned against drawing immediate conclusions as he noted that short-term observations fail to capture the full picture.
“We mentioned last week that monitoring over one week is still not sufficient to give us a good ground for assessment,” Trinidad said.
“What we reported last week was that there were zero monitored PLA warships. For this week, we are releasing the monthly monitoring. Probably after a month or three months, we could give a better appreciation, a better assessment,” he added.
The AFP tracked 18,534 total vessels throughout August as part of its maritime domain awareness operations inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). This broader traffic comprised 2,545 domestic ships and 15,989 foreign vessels.
Officials issued radio challenges to 12,502 of them, while 6,032 ships did not respond to such calls.

Related Tags

AFP China West Philippine Sea territorial dispute
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