A lone Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessel was reported in a standoff with more than 20 Chinese ships around Scarborough Shoal on Friday, a maritime security expert said.
Ray Powell, a former United States Air Force official who now tracks developments in the South China Sea, said the PCG’s BRP Cabra encountered eight China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels and 14 maritime militia ships in the area.
“Today the Philippines Coast Guard’s 44-meter patrol vessel BRP Cabra faces off alone against an armada of at least 8 China Coast Guard & 14 China maritime militia sent out to guard China’s newly designated ‘nature preserve’ at Scarborough Shoal,” Powell wrote in a post on X.
China declared Scarborough Shoal as part of a national nature reserve on September 10, a move criticized by Philippine officials as an assertion of Beijing’s sweeping claims in the West Philippine Sea.
The PCG and the Philippine Navy have not released details on their monitoring of the incident as of press time.
