Philippines Detects 29 Chinese Ships in South China Sea, Raises Alert Following Space Launch

Kuala Lumpur -- The Philippine Armed Forces announced on Tuesday that it had detected 29 Chinese vessels in four areas of the South China Sea between November 3 and 8, while the Philippine Navy raised the readiness level of its units following China’s launch of a space rocket on Monday.

Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, spokesperson for the Philippine Armed Forces on the West Philippine Sea, told reporters that the detected ships included vessels belonging to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy and the Chinese Coast Guard.

In a separate statement, the Philippine Navy’s Western Command confirmed that precautionary measures had been taken to ensure operational readiness and to monitor any potential incidents related to China’s launch of the Long March 12 rocket yesterday from the Wenchang Commercial Space Launch Site in Hainan Province. It noted that the rocket launch produced a luminous phenomenon known as a “space jellyfish” in the skies over Puerto Princesa and several islands in the region.

These developments come amid ongoing tensions over sovereignty and maritime rights in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims most of and which is one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes, carrying more than $3 trillion in goods annually.

In 2016, an international tribunal constituted under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea issued a ruling in favor of the Philippines in the case it brought against China, concluding that China’s claims to historic rights within what is known as the “nine-dash line” had no legal basis under the convention. However, Beijing has refused to recognize the ruling. (End) AAB/MNF