The presence of Chinese vessels at a reef within the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), which had aroused the concern of President Rodrigo Duterte, was detected by a US-based research company as early as November last year. Philippine military forces reported sighting the vessels, which they believed to be manned by Chinese maritime militia members, at the Julian Felipe (Whitsun) Reef only early this month. But Simularity, a research company that analyzes satellite data, said it first documented the Chinese vessels in November 2020 and that a large number had been “mooring, arriving and departing at Whitsun Reef since mid-December 2020.”

Cabalza, D. (2021, March 27). Chinese ships moored at Julian Felipe Reef since November 2020. Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. A4.