The 12,000-ton China Coast Guard 5901 is the world’s largest coast guard ship. - Photo from https://www.sealight.live
MANILA: Amid ongoing talks between Manila and Beijing, the China Coast Guard’s (CCG) biggest vessel, dubbed the “monster ship,” returned to the West Philippine Sea on Wednesday (July 3) morning.
West Philippine Sea monitor Ray Powell told INQUIRER.net on Wednesday that a CCG vessel with hull number 5901 was spotted off Ayungin Shoal at 7.26am and is now going towards Mischief Reef.
“Beijing sent CCG 5901 to Ayungin shoal at the same time as the BCM (bilateral consultation mechanism) was going on,” Powell, who heads SeaLight, which monitors Chinese activity in the South China Sea, told INQUIRER.net in a message on X.
“China aims to force the Philippines to negotiate from a position of relative weakness in hopes of extracting concessions in exchange for de-escalation,” he added.
The resupply activity of BRP Sierra Madre, a naval outpost grounded in Ayungin Shoal, has become one of the flash points of tension between Manila and Beijing.
The June 17 confrontation between the CCG and the Philippine Navy there led to what the latter deemed “looting” and caused a serious injury to one of its personnel.
Manila and Beijing held the regular BCM on Tuesday following this incident, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs. - The Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
