Navy: Fewer Chinese vessels seen in West Philippine Sea

MANILA, Philippines — The number of Chinese vessels in Philippine waters has decreased notably, according to a Navy official who said the convening of the bilateral consultation mechanism (BCM) early this month may have contributed to the development.

“For the past three weeks there was a decrease. Whether this is because of the BCM or not, it still remains to be seen,” Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, Philippine Navy spokesman for the West Philippine Sea, told reporters yesterday.

The Philippine Navy monitored more than 90 People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), China Coast Guard (CCG) and maritime militia vessels in the past days, down from 129 in mid-June.

“We are monitoring continuously the number of ships in the WPS. Based on the numbers for the past one month, we have seen a decrease. Last week we had 94, the previous week 95, this week 104, so that’s only a very slight increase compared to the previous month,” he said.

It was not clear, however, if the departure of some Chinese vessels from the West Philippine Sea was part of any deescalation effort by Beijing, according to Trinidad.

On the part of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine Navy, they would continue to adhere to international law – as per President Marcos’ instructions – in doing their part to de-escalate tension with China, Trinidad said.

He said the AFP would perform its role “by ensuring that our actions are not escalatory by following the rules of engagement and international law in performing our mandate.”

“We will continue securing the integrity of the national territory, especially in the WPS, against the actions by the agents of aggression of the Chinese Communist Party. The Chinese Communist Party’s actions in the entire South China Sea are escalatory and destabilizing,” he stressed.

He also made it clear that rotation and resupply (RORE) missions will continue, along with maritime air surveillance flights.

“We will continue securing our features and the integrity of the national territory in the WPS. All our actions are governed by the rules of engagement and international law. Again, we have never been escalatory in our actions,” he added.

Trinidad said