The Philippines has successfully resumed its coast guard presence at Sabina Shoal, of the South China Sea’s Spratly Islands that is fiercely contested by China.
The unnamed coast guard vessel arrived with “no significant adverse situation,” according to Philippine Coast Guard Chief Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan was cited as saying by the Manila Standard Sunday.
Sabina Shoal, known in the Philippines as Escoda Shoal and in China as Xianbin Reef, lies within the Southeast Asian country’s internationally recognized exclusive economic zone (EEZ). It sits 86 miles from Palawan and over 600 miles from the nearest Chinese shores.
China has accused the Philippines of attempting to establish a permanent presence at Sabina Shoal, similar to its deployment at Second Thomas Shoal, where the Philippines has maintained an outpost aboard a deliberately grounded warship since 1999.
The Philippine coast guard and Chinese Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a written request for comment.
Commodore Jay Tarriela, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson for the South China Sea, speaks in Manila on September 16. The Philippines has sent an unnamed vessel to replace the BRP Teresa Magbanua, which was stationed at Sabina Shoal.
Jam Sta Rosa/AFP via Getty Images
The BRP Teresa Magbanua, one of the Philippines’ largest coast guard ships, had been stationed at Sabina Shoal since April. Chinese forces in recent weeks aggressively confronted Philippine ships seeking to resupply the vessel, resorting to water cannons and ramming. The 318-foot ship departed from the shoal last week, with the Philippine coast guard citing bad weather.
Following the exit, Chinese state media said that they had “thwarted” Philippine efforts at Sabina Shoal.
Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo dismissed speculation the ship’s withdrawal was tied to South China Sea-centered talks the two countries had held just days earlier, calling the timing coincidental. “There was no deal,” he stressed, per ANC Digital.
Manalo also mentioned the possibility of multilateral discussions on the South China Sea on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly but added he had not yet received a formal invitation to such talks.
Though the Philippines’ fresh deployment to Sabina Shoal apparently proceeded without mishap, China has maintained a heavy maritime presence near Palawan. Ray Powell, director of SeaLight, a maritime monitoring group affiliated with Stanford University, wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that the organization had tracked six Chinese militia vessels Monday escorting the research ship Haiyang Dizhi 12 Hao just 27 nautical miles (31 miles) from Palawan.
Powell described the situation as a “survey-in-force,” stressing that such activity within another nation’s EEZ violates international law as defined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
China has also appealed to UNCLOS, along with alleged historical rights, to justify its claims over most of the South China Sea. A Hague-based international tribunal cited the treaty in its 2016 ruling that largely sided with the Philippines.
China maintains the decision was invalid and continues to press its claims in the energy-rich waterway, putting it at odds with not only the Philippines but Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and Taiwan.
“It is unfortunate that China continues to undertake illegal, coercive, aggressive, and deceptive actions in the South China Sea,” the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs told Newsweek earlier in September. “The Philippines remains steadfast in defending its sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea,” the statement continued, emphasizing this includes Sabina Shoal.
On Saturday, a hot mic picked up President Joe Biden remarking on China’s behavior at a Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) summit. Speaking with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Biden said China is “testing us” across the region, including the South China Sea.
“China continues to behave aggressively, testing us all across the region, and it’s true in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, South China, South Asia, and the Taiwan Straits,” Biden said
The Quad is a strategic alliance between the U.S., India, Japan and Australia. While China is a chief topic of concern at Quad meetings, Biden has maintained the grouping’s primary focus is to support international law and regional cooperation rather than directly containing China.
The U.S. and the Philippines share a Mutual Defense Treaty, which Biden has called “ironclad.”
