AFP: No more China’s monster ship in Phl EEZ

China Coast Guard 5901, the world's largest coast guard ship also known as “The Monster” ship, has already left the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the Armed Forces of the Philippines said Thursday.

In a radio interview, AFP spokesperson, Col. Francel Margareth Padilla, said the 165-meter monster ship was monitored “fleeting” in the Philippine waters.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter) last Friday, maritime security analyst Ray Powell, said the CCG ship known as “The Monster” conducted a brief “intrusive patrol” west of Bajo de Masinloc, also known as Panatag Shoal or Scarborough Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.

“China conducts intrusive patrols deep within the exclusive economic zones of neighboring countries... to establish a continuous presence and gradually normalize Chinese jurisdiction over areas granted to its neighbors under international law,” Powell, a former United States Air Force official and ex-Defense Attaché, wrote in his post.

Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad, the Navy spokesperson for the WPS, confirmed that the monster ship entered the location 50 nautical miles from Panatag Shoal in the morning 24 May.

China’s largest ship was accompanied by a smaller CCG vessel with bow number 5203.

Padilla reiterated the two CCG vessels earlier sighted near Bajo de Masinloc already left the Philippine waters as of Sunday.

“It is now out of our EEZ,” she stressed.

Despite the ships' departure, Padilla said the AFP continues to monitor the situation in the area.

“The AFP continues to conduct regular monitoring and maritime operations within the West Philippine Sea to ensure the security and safety of our maritime domain,” she stressed.

Padilla said the AFP's presence in the area “underscores their dedication to protecting the Philippines' exclusive economic zones and upholding international law.”