MANILA – The Philippine Navy (PN) monitored 98 Chinese vessels of various kinds in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) from May 7 to 13.
Based on the data from the PN released on Wednesday, these sightings can be broken down into the following:
–eight China Coast Guard Vessels (CCGVs), two People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) ships and 18 Chinese maritime militia vessels (CMMVs) in Bajo de Masinloc;
–six CCGVs and 25 CMMVs in Ayungin Shoal;
–two CCGVs, two PLAN ships and 24 CMMVs in Pagasa Island;
–one PLAN and two CMMVs in Kota Island;
–one CMMV in Likas Island;
–four CMMVs in Panata Island;
–two CMMVs and one Chinese cargo ship in Patag Island.
These are lower than the 105 Chinese vessels sighted in these features from April 30 to May 6.
“There was a decrease from the previous week, from 129 pre-‘Balikatan’ to 108 just after ‘Balikatan’, down to 98 as of yesterday (Monday) so we see a downward trend,” said Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad, Navy spokesperson for the WPS. (PNA)
