A Chinese aircraft carrier, Shandong (CV-17), and a Type 815A Chinese electronic surveillance ship (AGI-797) were tracked sailing within Philippine waters, Navy spokesperson Captain John Percie Alcos confirmed on Thursday.

“The Philippine Navy, through its Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities, monitored the presence of two People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLA-N) vessels operating in separate locations off the northern coast of Luzon,” Alcos told reporters in an ambush interview in Manila City.

According to Alcos, the aircraft carrier Shandong (CV-17) was monitored about 2.23 nautical miles southwest of Babuyan Island on April 22.

On the same day, the Navy also tracked the Chinese electronic surveillance ship navigating approximately 33.11 nautical miles northwest of Dalupiri Island, or about 38.91 nautical miles northwest of Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte.

“They're actually conducting normal naval operations en route to a specific destination that we still do not know,” Alcos said.

He noted that the PLA warships expeditiously passed through Philippine waters and did “not stop in any part of their particular travel.”

Alcos said the Naval Forces Northern Luzon has already deployed maritime assets to further monitor the presence of the Chinese warships.

“Every time we monitor the presence of any foreign ship, whether it's from our allies and other countries, we normally challenge them,” he added.

According to Alcos, this is the first time that the Philippine Navy has detected a Chinese aircraft carrier sailing close to the Philippine coast.

“We expect a lot of vessels to transit that particular area, especially off the coast of the Babuyan Islands and Dalupiri Island because it's a recognized maritime corridor,” he said.

“With the Balikatan exercises ongoing, we also expect several key players to be there also to monitor the exercise,” he added.

While these warships were tracked within the country’s territorial waters, Alcos said this should not cause alarm.

“It is within our territorial waters but we cannot say for certain if they pose a real threat because their passage was expeditious,” he said.

Alcos stressed that the Philippine Navy continues to uphold its mandate of maintaining maritime situational awareness “to ensure safe navigation and adherence to international maritime norms.”

“It remains committed to promoting regional stability through the responsible monitoring and reporting of maritime activities within the Philippine maritime domain,” he added.