PCG issues radio challenge vs China Coast Guard vessel off Zambales

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Saturday said that it challenged a China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel to prevent it from moving closer to the Philippine coast.

In a statement, the PCG said that the 99-meter CCG 3302 vessel was detected approaching within 83 to 85 nautical miles off the coast of Palauig, Zambales.

PCG’s radio challenge emphasized that the CCG 3302’s patrol was a violation of the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and the 2016 Arbitral Award, which invalidated China's claims in the South China Sea that included areas that are part of Manila's exclusive economic zone.

“The PCG remains resolute in its patriotic duty to patrol the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), aiming to prevent the normalization of illegal Chinese activities while documenting the CCG's illegal patrols in the Philippines' West Philippine Sea,” the statement said.

CCG 3302 was among the 9 CCG vessels reportedly patrolling the Philippines’ EEZ in January.

The same vessel also fired a water cannon and rammed PCG’s BRP Datu Pagbuaya during a mission near Scarborough Shoal in December 2024.

The attack led to damage on the protective cover of the ship’s exhaust and deformed tanks carrying fuel for Filipino fishermen. —VBL, GMA Integrated News