Philippine troops stationed on BRP Sierra Madre successfully drove away Chinese vessels that attempted to intrude into Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, easing tensions in the West Philippine Sea, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. confirmed Sunday, Aug. 24.
Brawner made the disclosure while observing Exercise ALON, a joint military drill of the AFP and Australian Defence Force (ADF) in Palawan, together with Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles.
“The situation is improving,” Brawner said when asked for an update on the deployment of China Coast Guard (CCG) ships armed with water cannon and fast boats with mounted weapons near BRP Sierra Madre.
“We’ve been successful in pushing back Chinese intrusions into the shoal itself. We are successful in driving the Chinese away from Ayungin,” he added.
According to the AFP, maritime domain awareness monitoring conducted on Aug. 20 detected five CCG ships supported by 11 rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs), nine Chinese maritime militia vessels, one aircraft, and an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operating near the shoal.
Brawner also said he instructed the Western Command (Wescom) to cut fishing nets laid by Chinese maritime militia along the shoal’s southeast approach, in preparation for an upcoming resupply mission to BRP Sierra Madre.
He also reiterated that the death of any Filipino in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) would constitute a “red line” that would trigger the military’s contingency measures, possibly including the invocation of the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT).
“Kapag may namatay na Pilipino (If a Filipino dies), that is the red flag, that is the red line,” the military chief said during the sidelines of the second Philippines-Australia Defense Ministers’ Meeting in Makati City on Friday, Aug. 22.
“Our guidelines to our troops there is that they practice maximum tolerance and still observe the rule of law,” Brawner said.
“We will remain in our post and we will make sure that we continue to uphold our sovereignty and sovereign rights,” he added, noting that the presence of BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal symbolizes the country’s assertion of its sovereign rights to its exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
