Courtesy: Philippine Coast Guard (via Commodore Jay Tarriela/X)
The Philippine government will raise its concerns over recent developments in the West Philippine Sea – including Beijing’s deployment of its so-called “monster ship” near Zambales – during the two states’ scheduled bilateral meeting on Thursday.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo on Wednesday confirmed the two states will be holding the Philippine-China Bilateral Consultation Mechanism (BCM) meeting in China on Jan. 16, with Undersecretary Maria Theresa Lazaro as the Philippine delegation head.
Asked if Manila would be demanding Beijing to pull out its 541-foot-long coast guard vessel near Zambales, Manalo said: “We will certainly raise the concerns that we have, including that.”
He said the two governments would try to look at how they could cooperate in certain areas, including on the environment and even through a possible coast guard-to-coast guard cooperation.
“But that would have to be agreed in a memorandum of understanding between the two (coast guards), but it’s cooperative in nature, of course,” he said.
The National Security Council earlier said the Philippines is not tolerating the illegal activities of Chinese maritime forces within the Philippine waters as it confirmed that CCG vessel 5901, dubbed as “The Monster” due to its size, continues to operate illegally within the country’s exclusive economic zone.
Meanwhile, the DFA is studying the possibility of filing a diplomatic protest over underwater drones recovered in Philippine waters once it is confirmed that these belong to a foreign state.
During a Senate hearing on Wednesday, DFA Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said that if the drone is proven to be state-owned, it would constitute a violation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
De Vega assured lawmakers that the DFA would not hesitate to lodge a formal protest in such a scenario.
“Under Article 245 of UNCLOS, the expressed consent from the coastal state is needed for a foreign country to conduct marine scientific research in its territorial sea,” De Vega said.
“So, that is a violation. If China has it, well, we’re going to protest instead once you admit that the drone is yours.”
Philippine Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad on Tuesday revealed that five underwater drones have been recovered across different locations in the country since 2024.
“The five that were given to us for forensics. Two were found in Calayan Island; one in Pasuquin, Ilocos Norte; the most recent one in Masbate; and another one in the waters of Initao, Misamis Oriental,” Trinidad said.
Philippine National Police Regional Director for Bicol Brig. Gen. Andre Dizon reported that the drone recovered in Masbate bore the marking “HY-119,” which is linked to the Chinese government.
Defense Undersecretary Ignacio Madriaga said the presence of foreign-owned is always considered a security threat.
“But as far as the National Defense is concerned, we will always consider them as a threat, as an intrusion of our sovereignty regardless whether it is commercial or military specifications,” Madriaga told the Senate.
As this developed, Japan and the Philippines vowed Wednesday to strengthen security cooperation to counter China’s actions in key sea trade routes, amid speculation incoming US President Donald Trump could scale back security commitments in Asia.
Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya met with Manalo and President Ferdinand Marcos in Manila to affirm security commitments.
Iwaya and Manalo discussed Beijing’s efforts to assert control over the South China Sea, a strategic trade route, as well as Beijing’s territorial and sovereign rights claims in the East China Sea that overlap with Japan’s.
“In response to the developments in the South China Sea, we agreed to further strengthen Japan-Philippines partnership,” Iwaya told a joint news conference.
He vowed continuing Japanese assistance to enhance the “maritime security” and “maritime safety capabilities” of the Philippines, which has been engaged in increasingly tense confrontations with China over disputed South China Sea waters and reefs in the past year.
China claims most of the strategic waterway despite an international tribunal ruling that its claim lacked any legal basis. With AFP
