AFP: Chinese ships tail multilateral exercise in West Philippine Sea

MANILA, Philippines — Chinese Navy vessels tailed the joint maritime exercises of the Philippines, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and the United States in the West Philippine Sea, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said yesterday.

The fourth Multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity (MMCA) on Saturday “proceeded as planned without any interference and the safety of participating countries’ vessels was ensured by the protocols in place,” said AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla.

Vessels of China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy were seen in the vicinity of the exercise, she noted.

“China does this sometimes for their internal audience so that they would not be humiliated and look weak,” said Philippine Navy spokesman for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad.

Allied nations and the Philippines’ combined armed and defense forces conducted the one-day MMCA within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.

New Zealand joined the MMCA for the first time.

The fourth MMCA followed the August exercise, a two-day combined naval and air force exercise of Australia, Canada and the US in the West Philippine Sea.

“We will continue to actively engage with regional and international partners, fostering alliances through joint exercises, information sharing and capacity-building initiatives,” Padilla said.

Meanwhile, two China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels were monitored by BRP Suluan in Scarborough Shoal on Sept. 26.

Suluan, a 44-meter multi-role response vessel, was reportedly watching over Filipino fishermen in the area when it spotted two CCG vessels with bow numbers 3302 and 3106.

Radio challenges were reportedly issued by Suluan.

Container ship MV Maersk Keelung and bulk carrier MV Wu Gu Feng also received a radio challenge. No explanation was provided as to why Suluan sent them a radio challenge.