'Alone' BRP Cabra faced with 22 Chinese vessels in Scarborough Shoal —expert

Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) ship BRP Cabra was facing off against 22 Chinese vessels which were guarding Scarborough Shoal on Friday, according to a maritime expert.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), former United States Air Force official and ex-Defence Attaché Ray Powell said Beijing sent out eight China Coast Guard (CCG) ships and 14 maritime militia vessels in the area.

“Today the PCG’s 44-meter patrol vessel BRP Cabra faces off alone against an armada of at least eight CCG and 14 maritime militia sent out to guard China’s newly designated ‘nature reserve’ at Scarborough Shoal,” Powell said.

GMA News Online has sought information from the PCG as well as the Philippine Navy on their monitoring of the situation in Scarborough Shoal but they have yet to respond as of posting time.

On September 10, China announced the creation of a national nature reserve in Scarborough Shoal.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on September 13 said it formally filed a diplomatic protest against China over its plan.

EXPLAINER: What is Scarborough Shoal and why is it important?

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 ????????maritime militia sent out to guard ????????'s newly designated "nature preserve"???? at Scarborough Shoal. https://t.co/UX7smjsBij pic.twitter.com/lftZrMuuPK

— Ray Powell (@GordianKnotRay) September 19, 2025

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) last Tuesday said it will not allow China to build a nature reserve in Scarborough Shoal.

“Whatever the adversary the South Sea Fleet would plan is beyond us,” said Philippine Navy spokesperson for WPS Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trindidad

“What we control is the actions of the Armed Forces, the Philippine Navy, the Air Force, and the Philippine Army. At hindi natin papayagan na ang sa atin ay mawawala,” he added.

(And we will not allow what is ours to be lost.)

Australia, Canada, and Japan also rejected China's announcement.

On Tuesday, a Filipino crewman onboard the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) ship BRP Datu Gumbay Piang was hurt from shattered glass after CCG vessels fired water cannon during the distribution of assistance to Pinoy fishers near Scarborough Shoal.

Scarborough Shoal is located 124 nautical miles off Masinloc, Zambales, and is considered within the Philippines’ 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Tensions continue as Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea, a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual shipborne commerce, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei.

Parts of the South China Sea that fall within Philippine territory have been renamed by the government as the West Philippine Sea to reinforce the country’s claim.

The West Philippine Sea refers to the maritime areas on the western side of the Philippine archipelago including Luzon Sea and the waters around, within and adjacent to the Kalayaan Island Group and Bajo de Masinloc.

In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines over China's claims in the South China Sea, saying that it had "no legal basis."

China has refused to recognize the decision. —VAL, GMA Integrated News