A People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy vessel and a Chinese Coast Guard-5203 (CCG-5203) vessel were spotted by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) yesterday anchored in waters in the vicinity of Pag-asa Island in Palawan, along with 42 suspected Chinese maritime militia. In a statement, the PCG said its personnel stationed in Pag-asa Island monitored the presence of the Chinese vessels with an estimated distance of around 4.5 to eight nautical miles from the island, which is “clearly inside the land feature’s 12 nautical miles territorial sea.”

Ramirez, R. (2023, March 5). Chinese vessels spotted near Pag-asa Island. The Philippine Star, p. 4.