Chinese ships shadowed the Philippines' regular aid mission for fisherfolk off Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal on Friday in the West Philippine Sea, which a regional monitor called a 'new normal.' Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela confirmed the ongoing 'Kadiwa' mission there. Ray Powell noted six China Coast Guard and 10 maritime militia vessels enforcing an exclusion zone.
On Friday, Chinese ships shadowed a Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) mission near Panatag Shoal, also known as Bajo de Masinloc. The BFAR's 44-meter BRP Cape San Agustin and six other 30-meter BFAR vessels approached within 30 nautical miles (NM) east of the shoal on Thursday afternoon but repositioned overnight to 70 NM southeast, according to Ray Powell, SeaLight director and program head at Stanford University's Gordian Knot Center.
Six China Coast Guard vessels and 10 maritime militia vessels were present to 'aggressively enforce its exclusion zone around the shoal,' Powell noted. 'I think this is the new normal at both Scarborough Shoal and also off Palawan,' he said in a message on X (formerly Twitter). 'China has essentially determined that it will shadow Kadiwa missions to assert its jurisdiction within its [10] dash line,' he added.
Since effectively taking over the shoal in 2012, China has enforced an 'exclusion zone' preventing fisherfolk access. Through its '10-dash line,' Beijing claims sovereignty over nearly the entire South China Sea, but Manila took the issue to an international court that ruled in the Philippines' favor in 2016. The arbitral tribunal also declared Panatag Shoal a traditional fishing ground for the Philippines, China, and Vietnam.
Refusing to recognize the ruling, China continued aggressive actions, including a notable incident on August 11 that led to a collision between its coast guard vessel and navy warship. Nearly a month later, Beijing unilaterally declared Panatag an environmental nature reserve, a move rejected by Manila.