PH has 'no means' to expel China monster ship - Marcos 

The Philippines has no means of expelling China Coast Guard (CCG) “monster ship” from the country's territorial waters, President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. said Thursday.

At a Palace press briefing, Marcos was asked if the government would not change its approach given that China's vessel is not leaving the Philippine territory. Still, the President vowed that the government would continue to defend its rights in the Exclusive Economic Zone. 

''Well, we don’t have the means na paalisin.  Hindi naman – buti kung mayroon tayong aircraft carrier na may kasamang destroyer, frigate, at saka submarine na papupuntahin natin doon para matulak silang palayo. Wala naman tayong ganoon,'' Marcos said.

(Well, we don't have the means to expel them. It's good if we have an aircraft carrier that has a destroyer, frigate, and submarine that may expel the vessel. We don't have that.) 

''Kung sa palakihan at paramihan lang ng barko, malayo tayo sa China. Pero ang policy naman natin is that we will just continue to defend our territorial, our sovereign territory and our territorial rights in the EEZ,'' he added.

(If it's about the size and number of vessels, we are far behind China. But our policy is that we will just continue to defend our territorial, our sovereign territory and our territorial rights in the EEZ.)

The BRP Teresa Magbanua has further pushed back the CCG “monster ship” away from the Zambales coastline, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said over the weekend.

In a statement, PCG spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Commodore Jay Tarriela said CCG-5901 was approximately 117 nautical miles away from the coastline.

The PCG had also issued radio challenges against the CCG monster ship, warning it that it was sailing within the Philippines' Exclusive Economic Zone.

Tensions continue as Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea.

In 2016, an international arbitration tribunal in the Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines over China's claims, but it has not recognized the decision.—LDF, GMA Integrated News