What Are 135 Chinese Military Boats Doing Near Julian Felipe Reef?

A reason to be alarmed? The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) raises concerns over the "dispersed and scattered" of military boats near Whitsun Reef.

PCG officials say there was an increased number of Chinese vessels spotted over the past few weeks, totaling about 135. Last November 13, that number was only around 111.

Whitsun Reef, or Julian Felipe Reef, is an exclusive economic zone where the Philipines “enjoys the exclusive right to exploit or conserve any resources." It stretches more than 320 kilometers west of Palawan Island and more than 1,000 kilometers from the nearest major Chinese area of Hainan Island.

“No response was made to the radio challenges issued by the PCG [Philippines Coast Guard] to the CMM vessels which is now estimated to have grown to more than 135 vessels dispersed and scattered within Julian Felipe Reef,” the Manila’s coastguard said in a report.

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The Chinese government has yet to issue a statement on the matter.

The latest news follows a long list of "swarming" incidents since The Hague ruling. We may recall that the international tribunal tossed China's 90-percent claim of the South China Sea. Beijing still hasn't recognized the ruling. In the past, the Philippine government has accused China of aggression over the so-called nine-dash line.

The tensions over competing sovereignty claims between China and the Philippines have only continued since President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr came into office in 2022.

Unfortunately, the waters have also served as a source of naval friction between China and the United States. American President Joe Biden had promised to defend the Philippines from a potential attack following the report of Filipino and Chinese vessels colliding near Second Thomas Shoal, which also falls within the exclusive economic zone. Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, this stretches to 370 kilometers from a country’s coast.

Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam have each had claims to the various islands and reefs in the sea.