MANILA: The Philippines said Chinas deployment of its largest coast guard vessel inside Manilas exclusive economic zone (EEZ) was alarming and clearly meant to intimidate fishermen operating around a contested shoal in the South China Sea.
We were surprised about the increasing aggression being showed by the Peoples Republic of China in deploying the monster ship, National Security Council spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said in a press conference on Tuesday.
Manila has lodged a protest over the presence of the 165m (541 ft) long vessel Chinese coast guard vessel 5901, which was spotted 77 nautical miles off the coast of Zambales province, and demanded its withdrawal from the EEZ, Malaya said.
It is an escalation and provocative, Malaya said, saying the presence the vessel was illegal and unacceptable.
The Philippine Coast Guard said it had deployed two of its largest vessels to drive away the Chinese vessel.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Monday that its coast guards patrol and law enforcement activities were reasonable, lawful and beyond reproach.
Tensions between the Philippines, a US treaty ally, and Beijing have escalated over the past two years due to overlapping claims in the South China Sea.
In 2016, an international tribunal ruled Chinas claims to large swathes of the disputed waterway had no basis, a decision Beijing rejects.
Chinas expansive claims overlap with the EEZs of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam. The disputed waterway is a strategic shipping route through which about US$3 trillion of annual commerce moves.