Manila, Philippines:
Satellite images obtained by Reuters on Thursday show a build-up of Chinese civilian ships near disputed Thitu Island, Manila's main outpost in the South China Sea, but a senior Philippine navy officer said this is “no cause for concern.”
One of the images taken by Maxar Technologies on Monday and reviewed by Reuters shows about 60 ships, some within two nautical miles of Thitu, a strategically important island from which Manila monitors Chinese ships and aircraft in the busy waterway.
Vice Adm. Alfonso Torres, head of the Philippines' Western Command, said it was common for “maritime militia” ships to gather in the area. Manila, the Pentagon and foreign diplomats say such ships are working with China's coast guard and navy to bolster Beijing's presence in disputed waters.
Photo credit: Reuters
Vice Admiral Roy Trinidad, Philippine Navy spokesman for the South China Sea, also said maritime militia ships were regularly in the area, adding that Manila was aware of the ships, which he called an “illegal presence” but that there was no cause for alarm. .
“It's not a cause for concern,” Trinidad said. “We don't have to read every action and react to it… What's important for us is that we maintain our attitude.”
Online ship trackers show that many of the ships in the satellite photos are Chinese-registered fishing vessels.
Photo credit: Reuters
China's Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. China has never confirmed that it has a civilian militia.
The island, called Pag-Asa by the Philippines, is Manila's largest and most strategically important island in the disputed South China Sea, which is largely claimed by China and through which billions of dollars of goods pass annually. A 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague found that Beijing's extensive claims had no basis in international law.
The buildup comes after months of clashes and clashes between Chinese coast guard and fishing vessels and Philippine vessels, especially at the Scarborough and Second Thomas Shoals.
Thitu is close to a Chinese naval base and airstrip on the Subi Reef, which has at times served as a port for large numbers of Chinese maritime militia ships, Trinidad said.
“If you go in there (to Subi), if you go out, you will pass through the territorial sea of Pag-Asa,” he said.
Regional diplomats and security analysts are closely watching developments, with some noting that the Chinese ships had their transponders on this week, allowing them to be tracked.
Singapore-based security scholar Collin Koh said Beijing could test Manila's responses at a time of domestic political tensions in the Philippines.
Controversial Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte accused President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of trying to remove her from office after the national police filed a formal complaint accusing her of abuse and coercion.
“This will need to be monitored in the coming days,” said Koh of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
If the militias' presence continues, Koh said, China may hope to delay Philippine construction work on the island.
A new aircraft hangar is reportedly expected to be completed in the coming weeks, the latest in a number of steps to strengthen the Philippines' presence on Thitu and improve monitoring capabilities.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Our staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)