The Philippine Navy on Tuesday confirmed it has monitored two Chinese fishing boats on the eastern side of the country but noted that “it is not alarming.”
In a press conference at Camp Aguinaldo, Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, said the Chinese vessels were spotted outside the country’s territorial sea and were among other foreign ships being monitored in the maritime traffic within the Philippine exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
“This is not alarming. It is not only the Chinese fishing boats that we monitor. There are other fishing boats from other countries all over our EEZ, including ASEAN countries and Pacific Island states,” he said.
It was former US Air Force official and ex-Defense Attaché Ray Powell who reported that two Chinese fishing boats — the Lu Rong Yu 51794 and Lu Yan Yuan Yu 017 — were seen “operating” less than 20 nautical miles from the San Ildefonso Peninsula in Casiguran, Aurora.
Trinidad said the country’s naval forces spotted the boats from 32 nautical miles away.
“Again, a fishing vessel is just one of the hundreds on a daily basis. Unless there is a more specific report that would give us reason to zero in on a particular fishing vessel or a particular ship out there, then we treat them all as fishing vessels that are within our EEZ,” he said.
Trinidad said the Armed Forces of the Philippines considers all factors regarding the presence of foreign vessels near the country’s territorial waters.
“Their presence will also depend on the weather. Generally, when there’s a typhoon, the maritime traffic decreases,” he said.
Trinidad said they “don’t give special attention” to vessels categorized as “normal fishing boats,” and the Navy sees their presence as part of the maritime traffic in the Philippine EEZ.
“No special attention was given, considering that we received the report yesterday afternoon. There are hundreds of fishing boats around the country. Unless there is a more detailed report on what we have to focus on,” he said.
However, Trinidad noted that some Chinese fishing boats are being tapped by the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) as “force multipliers.”
Unlike the Chinese Maritime Militia (CMM) vessels swarming the West Philippine Sea, Trinidad said the normal fishing boats are seen outside the EEZ.
“Our monitoring tells us that CMMVs are in the West Philippine Sea. Fishing vessels are all around. Although on a normal day, these are fishing vessels that have been tapped to act as force multipliers for the PLA Navy,” he added.