Zambales: The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Tuesday tracked and challenged the illegal presence of China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel CCG-4305 that was drifting at around 48 nautical miles west of the coastline of Pandaquit, Zambales.

According to Philippines News Agency, PCG spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea (WPS) Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela stated that the vessel was initially detected within the Philippine Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) through Canada's Dark Vessel Detection (DVD) Program. In response to this incursion, PCG commandant Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan ordered the deployment of both aerial and surface assets.

PCG's Piper Navajo 302 aircraft took off from La Union Airport to conduct a Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) flight over the area where the CCG vessel was detected. The aircraft confirmed the presence of CCG-4305 within the Philippine EEZ, approximately 50.1 nautical miles west of Pundaquit, Zambales.

The PCG aircrew issued several radio challenges, which the Chinese vessel did not acknowledge. The Piper Navajo 302 made multiple passes to document the incursion before returning to the airport. Concurrently, PCG vessel BRP Cape San Agustin was dispatched to the location and conducted radio challenges throughout the day.

Although the Chinese vessel briefly acknowledged the initial challenge in the morning, it later went silent and did not respond to subsequent challenges. CCG-4305 provided no lawful basis for its presence within the Philippines' EEZ, marking a violation of international maritime law.

PCG's actions align with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s directive to prevent the normalization of illegal patrols by the CCG within Philippine waters. These activities violate the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, and the 2016 Arbitral Award.

Rear Admiral Tarriela dismissed China's claim that Philippine monitoring activities are publicity stunts, emphasizing the legitimacy of such actions to preserve the country's sovereign rights. He also reported illegal marine scientific research activities by Chinese vessels in Cay 2 and Cay 3 inside the territorial sea of Pag-asa Island on Saturday.