Amid Beijing's uprising in the South China Sea, Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has said that the nation would not be intimidated by China's expansionist acts, Al Jazeera reported.
The new regulation, which took effect on June 15, enables the China Coast Guard to board and hold vessels in waters it lays claim to and question and detain foreign nationals found to have violated its "exit and entry rules" for up to 60 days.
In a message to reporters, Armed Forces of the Philippines public affairs office chief Col. Xerxes Trinidad stated, "The AFP will not discuss operational details on the legal humanitarian rotation and resupply mission at Ayungin Shoal, which is well within our EEZ (exclusive economic zone)."
As the world's largest maritime law enforcement agency, the CCG has more than 150 regional and oceangoing vessels displacing at least 1,000 tons. It also has approximately 50 vessels in the 500-1,000-ton class, and around 300 smaller coastal patrol boats.
Following China's Joint Sword-2024A military exercise around Taiwan, US experts analysed that Beijing has an intent to make large-scale military drills around the island a regular move with the China Coast Guard (CCG) to play a more important role in a blockade, reported Focus Taiwan.
Of particular concern was the fact that 35 of the aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan's southwest Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ).
As the Chinese ships entered restricted waters around Taiwan on Thursday, Taiwan's Coast Guard on Thursday drove China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels away and dispatched patrol boats to gather evidence, reported Focus Taiwan.
It accused China of "dangerous maneuvers and obstruction" and reinstalling a barrier at the disputed Scarborough Shoal, which Beijing blockaded and seized from Manila in 2012.
According to Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration (CGA), on both Friday and Saturday, four Chinese Coast Guard patrol vessels entered Kinmen's waters. The CGA closely monitored these incursions, issuing warnings until the Chinese ships departed.
Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr highlighted the significance of addressing the challenges posed by a "more assertive" China, emphasizing the need for the Philippines and its Asian neighbors to devise "new solutions," CNN Philippines reported.