Concerns about China spying on the Philippines from under the sea were raised Thursday following the discovery of a submerged Chinese submarine drone in the waters of San Pascual, Masbate, last Monday, 30 December.

A Philippine Navy official confirmed in a phone interview with DAILY TRIBUNE the discovery of a yellow Chinese underwater drone with the body marking “HY-119.”

The drone was capable of transmitting and receiving data, voice messages, and navigation information, the Navy officer said, adding that it could also communicate with surface units such as ships, planes and satellites.

On Wednesday, the police director in the Bicol Region, P/Brig. Gen. Andre Dizon, said the device was still flashing its lights when it was found. It was about two meters (six feet) long and torpedo-shaped with fins.

“Based on our open source research on the internet, HY-119 refers to a Chinese underwater navigation and communication system,” Dizon said. “It had an antenna and an eye that could be used for viewing. Based on our research, this could be used for monitoring and reconnaissance.”

Dizon said the drone was not armed, but the police report listed “potential national security implications” as a significance of its recovery.

Three fishermen spotted and retrieved the drone near the coast of Barangay Iniwaran, San Pascual, Masbate. They handed it over to police authorities.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Thursday confirmed the turnover of the drone from the Philippine National Police to the Navy.

“The Navy is currently conducting a further investigation to determine its origin and purpose,” AFP Public Affairs Chief Col. Xerxes Trinidad said.

Underwater espionage

Trinidad noted the incident “underscores the importance of collaboration with local fisherfolk and maritime stakeholders.”

He urged local coastal communities to continue cooperating with the government to oversee Philippine waters.

The Philippine Navy is determining the submarine drone’s origin and purpose, he added.

The Wall Street Journal, in a recent article, said the “new frontier for drone warfare” has gone “deep underwater” with autonomous vessels “with evocative names like Ghost Shark and Manta Ray.”

The paper said the underwater drones are “aimed at gathering intelligence and countering new threats at sea.”

Hunt for resources

Surigao del Norte Representative Robert Ace Barbers said the recovery of the underwater drone suggests China has possibly been long collecting intelligence and information in Philippine waters.

Amid the discovery of the Chinese submarine drone, Barbers urged the government to consider Surigao del Norte province as the site of a new naval facility under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) with the United States.

He pointed out that an EDCA naval site in Surigao del Norte would offer a vital line of defense against foreign intrusions and potential resource exploitation, particularly of deuterium deposits.

Barbers cautioned that foreign entities could be carrying out intelligence operations aimed at finding deuterium and other minerals in Philippine waters.

“With the growing global race to find renewable sources of fuel or energy like deuterium, which reportedly is abundant in the deep seas off the country’s eastern seaboard, it is not farfetched that China also wants to get its hands on it,” Barbers said.

Deuterium, a hydrogen isotope, is widely used in prototype fusion reactors and has applications in the military, industrial, and scientific fields. It is also used as a tracer in nuclear fusion reactors and helps to moderate neutrons in heavy water reactors.

The Philippines and China have for years clashed over maritime rights in the South China Sea as well as over the possession of reefs and islets in its waters.

China claims almost the entire sea, brushing off rival claims from other countries and an international ruling that said its assertion has no legal basis.

The Chinese embassy in Manila has yet to respond to the AFP’s request for comment.