The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Saturday, March 21, condemned the dangerous provocation by Chinese forces after flares were fired near one of its aircraft over Panganiban (Mischief) Reef, a militarized atoll in the West Philippine Sea (WPS). Rear Adm. Jay Tarriela said the incident happened during a maritime domain awareness (MDA) flight over the reef on Friday, March 20. “This shows the massive scale of the illegal reclamation by the Chinese government on Panganiban Reef, located well within our exclusive economic zone (EEZ),” he said.

Sadongdong, M. (2026, March 22). PCG condems China's dangerousprovocation over Mischief Reef. Tempo, p. 2.