The latest reported incidents in Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea illustrate China’s capacity to control the area despite its being occupied by the Philippines through the decrepit Philippine Navy ship BRP Sierra Madre, according to a maritime expert. “[The challenge is] sustaining our presence there and making sure China knows that we are serious about keeping it,” Jay Batongbacal of the University of the Philippines Institute for Maritime Affairs and the Law of the Sea told the Inquirer. The Department of Foreign Affairs on Friday accused Beijing of “illegal fishing” and blocking Philippine boats on a resupply mission using fishing nets and buoys near the shoal, a low-tide elevation located 194 kilometers (105 nautical miles) off Palawan that is within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Mangosing, F. (2022, June 13). China testing PH resolve to keep Ayungin Shoal. Philippine Daily Inquirer, pp. A2, A5.