China’s ‘monster’ ship returns to West Philippine Sea

RETURN TO PH WATERS China Coast Guard vessel 5901, called “The Monster,” is seen in the waters off Zambales province in the West Philippines in this photo taken by the Philippine Coast Guard on Jan. 11. —Photo courtesy of PCG

MANILA, Philippines — China’s largest coast guard vessel, nicknamed “The Monster,” returned to the West Philippine Sea over the weekend, according to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG). The PCG accused Beijing of trying to “normalize” such deployments to change the current situation in the area.

A smaller China Coast Guard ship (Bow No. 3304), which had replaced “The Monster” to maintain China’s presence, was gradually pushed away from Zambales’ coastline by the PCG’s patrol vessel, BRP Teresa Magbanua, PCG spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela said on Sunday.

READ: As ‘monster’ leaves, new Chinese ship takes its place off Zambales

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This prompted China to redeploy the 12,000-ton CCG 5901 on Saturday afternoon in the West Philippine Sea, part of the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, “to outmaneuver” Magbanua, he said. As of Sunday, it was 176 kilometers (95 nautical miles) off the coast of Zambales.

Despite adverse sea conditions with estimated wave heights of up to 5 meters, Tarriela said the BRP Teresa Magbanua continued to conduct vigilant monitoring of the illegal presence of the Chinese ship and was actively conducting radio challenges to address the unlawful presence of the CCG.

The PCG would continue to fulfill its patriotic duty to guard and protect our maritime jurisdiction against actors that disregard international law, all while ensuring that tensions remain non-escalatory, he said.

International attention

The PCG deployed BRP Cabra and two aircraft on Jan. 4 after it spotted the gigantic Chinese ship 100 km (54 nautical miles) from Capones Island in Zambales. The large Chinese vessel left the area last Wednesday but it was replaced by a smaller coast guard vessel, while BRP Teresa Magbanua took over BRP Cabra.

According to Tarriela, they have observed that Chinese patrols have come as close as 111 km (60 nautical miles) off Luzon’s coast, or within dash 4 of China’s arbitrary 10-dash territorial claim.

“Their goal is to normalize such deployments, and if these actions go unnoticed and unchallenged, it will enable them to alter the existing status quo,” he said.

Beijing released an official map in 2023 that included a so-called “10-dash line” that lays claim to most of the South China Sea and east of Taiwan, as well as to contested parts of Russia and India.

The Philippines was among the many countries that rejected the map.

An arbitration tribunal in The Hague under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in 2016 invalidated China’s claim to virtually the entire South China Sea and upheld the Philippines’ control over resources within a 370-km (200-nautical-mile) EEZ.

Beijing, however, did not take part in the proceedings and continues to reject the ruling.

“This is why it is important for the Philippine Coast Guard to actively expose these unlawful deployments of Chinese vessels to the global community, ensuring that such actions are not normalized and that this bullying behavior does not succeed,” Tarriela pointed out.

Armed vessel

On Saturday, the BRP Teresa Magbanua “boldly approached” the CCG 5901’s starboard side at a close range and challenged it on radio several times, telling the Chinese crew that they were “unlawfully operating within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone and do not possess any legal authority to conduct maritime patrols,” he said.

The Chinese ship arrived near Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal on Jan. 1 to boost Beijing’s control over the maritime area, according to Ray Powell, director of the SeaLight project at Stanford University who tracks South China Sea activities through satellite imaging. Three other CCG ships and seven maritime militia vessels were also at the shoal.

Panatag Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc lies 222 km (120 nautical miles) from the mainland west of Luzon, well within the country’s EEZ. Called Huangyan Dao by China, it is nearly 926 km (500 nautical miles) from the nearest major Chinese landmass of Hainan.

Beijing took hold of the shoal in 2012 after a two-month standoff with the Philippine Navy, prompting Manila to file a case against Beijing before an international arbitral tribunal the following year.

“The Monster,” also the world’s largest coast guard ship, has been spotted in the Philippines’ EEZ several times in the past year.

The 165-meter-long Chinese vessel is bigger than a United States Navy Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser and is armed with anti-aircraft guns and capable of staying at sea for up to 45 days.