satellite images collected by the European Space Agency have confirmed the presence of the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) ship, CCG-5901, known as the “Monster”, in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Philippines, which has been described as an act of “intimidation, coercion and aggression” by Beijing.
“The Government of the Philippines is concerned about the presence of the ‘monster ship’ (…) We have requested the Government of China, clearly and firmly, to withdraw its ship,” said Jonathan Malaya, spokesman for the Security Council. National. “They are displaying their boats to intimidate our fishermen”he added.
Although the ship was not in its territorial sea area, the transit of this vessel in its maritime area has set off alarms in the country, which considers this action as a violation of the rule of maritime lawwhich grants coastal states an EEZ of up to 370.4 kilometers. Furthermore, this rule establishes that each state will have the sovereign right to use its underwater resources over its EEZ.
“Today marks the sixteenth day of the illegal deployment of your ship by the Chinese Coast Guard off the coast of Zambales,” said Philippine coast guard spokesman Jay Tarriela in a post on ‘X’ on Monday. ‘ (formerly known as Twitter), which has highlighted the “brave men and women of the Philippine Coast Guard” for the monitoring carried out on said vessels.
According to the data of Global Fishing Watch The “Monster”, which has been operating for about three weeks in the EEZ of the Philippines, has continued to approach the country little by little and has even turned off its automatic identification system in order to go unnoticed, something that goes against the security protocols of the International Maritime Organization.
It should be noted that the United States and the Philippines have maintained an “ironclad” relationship since 1951. Mutual Defense Treaty– which Joe Biden was in charge of strengthening through complementary agreements -, which extends to the South China Sea. This treaty has been gaining more and more weight and relevance as episodes such as the passage of the “Monster” through the Philippine EEZ have occurred.
The ties between both powers have been eroding little by little. While the Philippines has defended that the atolls in conflict are located in the 370 kilometers of its EEZ, Beijing has also claimed this area, rich in resources and essential for trade, alleging historical reasons.
