A China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel has inched closer to the Philippines, sailing past an island located just 40 kilometers west of Calatagan in Batangas over the weekend, a maritime group said.
Based on monitoring by SeaLight, a maritime transparency project that monitors and reports activities in the South China Sea, the 135-meter CCG 5303 arrived 60 nautical miles west of Lubang Island at 4:20 p.m. on Sunday.
Retired United States Air Force Col. Ray Powell, director of SeaLight, said the ship is conducting an intrusive patrol.
Powell said that intrusive patrolling is a key component of “China’s strategy to reinforce its expansive maritime claims in disputed waters.” “By doing so, China aims to establish a continuous presence and gradually normalize its maritime activities in these areas,” he said.
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