Chinese aircraft carrier seen near Luzon amid Balikatan
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MANILA, Philippines — Two Chinese Navy vessels were seen passing through the waters off the Philippines' northern coast on Tuesday, April 22 — a day after the kick-off of the annual joint exercises between Filipino and American troops.
Philippine Navy spokesperson Capt. John Percie Alcos said the Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong (CV-17) was seen just 2.23 nautical miles southwest of the Babuyan Islands. Meanwhile, a Type 815A electronic surveillance ship was detected 33 nautical miles northwest of Dalupiri Island.
The aicraft carrier was seen around 9 a.m. while the surveillance ship was spotted past noon on the same day.
The Navy's reported sightings of these two Chinese Navy vessels came a day after the opening of the Balikatan joint exercises between the Philippines and the US.
The Philippines is the US' longest treaty partner in the region, and both countries have deepened ties under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
Alcos said the Chinese vessels appeared to be "conducting normal naval operations en route to a specific destination." He said their passage was "expeditious and they did not stop in any part of their particular travel."
The Navy has not deemed the passage of the two China vessels as irregular, as the area the two vessels were passing through — specifically off the coast of Babuyan Islands and Dalupiri Island — is a "recognized maritime corridor."
"With the Balikatan exercises ongoing, we also expect several key players to be there also to monitor the exercise," Alcos told reporters on Thursday, April 24.
The Philippine Navy challenged the presence of Shandong in the area, as it typically does when it sees foreign warships passing through the Philippines' territorial waters. But, "this time, we didn't get any reply," Rear Adm. Roy Vincent Trinidad, Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, said in a statement.
"While the normal procedure is for a warship or foreign ship to reply, there are some instances where they don't. This is one particular instance that the Shandong carrier battle group did not give any reply at the moment it was challenged," Trinidad said in mixed English and Filipino.
Trinidad confirmed that the Chinese aircraft carrier was seen moving toward the outer boundaries of the Philippines' exclusive economic zone on Wednesday evening, specifically around 180 nautical miles east of Aparri, Cagayan.
This is the first time the Armed Forces of the Philippines has reported a sighting of Shandong "this near to [the Philippines'] coast," Alcos said.
No speculation. Trinidad sidestepped questions on whether Shandong's passage through Philippine waters had anything to do with the ongoing Balikatan exercises.
"We do not speculate on the intention of their warships in our waters. What we do is we challenge them, we monitor them, to ensure that they traverse continuously and expeditiously," he said.
Shandong is a 70,000-ton aircraft carrier that uses the STOBAR (Short Take-Off Barrier-Arrested Recovery) system for launching and recovering its aircraft.
China deployed the aircraft carrier and other vessels to Taiwan in early April.
On Sunday, April 20, the China Navy accused the Philippines' BRP
Apolinario Mabini of illegally entering the territorial waters of
Huangyan Dao — the term Beijing uses to refer to Scarborough Shoal (Bajo
de Masinloc). The Philippine Navy was quick to dispel this claim and
said the Philippine frigate was there as part of the Philippines'
regular patrols of waters it has sovereignty over.
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