China made headlines on Tuesday last week when it intercepted vessels belonging to the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and the Philippine Coast Guard, which had about a dozen journalists -- including one from Nikkei Asia -- on board.
Chinese ships discharged water cannons and rammed the two Philippine ships, which were on course for Scarborough Shoal, a flashpoint in the disputed waters.
According to Philippine authorities, Chinese vessels were spotted tailing Philippine ships as early as 4:49 a.m. Nine ships were seen in total over the course of the day, including four coast guard vessels, several maritime militia ships and a naval vessel on the horizon. Philippine authorities tallied ten thunderous water cannon deluges.
"It just goes to show that Goliath is becoming more Goliath," Commodore Jay Tarriela, the PCG spokesperson, said at a news briefing the following day. "They don't hesitate to use brute force to violate international law."
The encounter was the first time China has fired water cannons at PCG vessels. Previous barrages targeted civilian supply vessels crewed by naval ratings. The water cannons had enough "pressure to bend steel" and damage equipment aboard the BRP Datu Bankaw, one of the two vessels sailing.
Amid the chaos of the water barrages, a crew member was heard to say: "China, seems like they want to kill us."
The ostensible purpose of the mission was to deliver food and fuel to fishermen who make their livings off the waters of Scarborough Shoal, and that was accomplished. A "transparency strategy" initiated by the PCG in February last year was also in play. That aims to raise awareness of the situation among the public and like-minded nations by inviting journalists along on missions in the disputed waters.
"The transparency strategy is not actually the only strategy that we have in the West Philippine Sea," said Tarriela. "It's just a part of it."
The Philippine defense department announced its Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept in March. It focuses on developing the archipelago's "capability to protect and secure [its] entire territory and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)."
Philippine Navy spokesperson Roy Trinidad told reporters later in the month that the effort to improve external defense was necessary to protect the country's EEZ.
The CADC represents a significant outward shift in Philippine defense priorities, moving away from internal threats such as a communist insurgency and religious extremism. The country faced armed Islamists in the south; an Islamic State-linked group took over the city of Marawi in 2017. There was also a deadly bombing at Mindanao State University there in December last year.
But external threats have turned out to be more pressing issues. The PCG recorded ten maritime confrontations with China in 2023 and three already this year, as Manila moves closer to Washington under the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. His predecessor, President Rodrigo Duterte, was more willing to move in China's shadow.
Although many of the specifics of the policy shift have not been revealed, the CADC has been widely welcomed by observers. Dindo Manhit, president of the Manila-based think tank Stratbase ADR Institute, said the adoption of the CADC "is in congruence with foreign and security policies of the current administration wherein the West Philippine Sea is at the core of our national interest."
"This strategy will enable the country to effectively safeguard its national sovereignty, territorial integrity and economic rights," he said.
Julio Amador, CEO of Amador Research Services in the Philippines, said the missions mounted by the Philippines are "crucial in both ensuring the safety of the military personnel on the Sierra Madre, and protecting its sovereign rights over Second Thomas Shoal."
The BRP Sierra Madre is a rusting Second World War U.S. landing craft intentionally grounded on the Second Thomas Shoal.
"Manila must develop both a short term strategy to deter China from further escalating the tensions, and to prevent China from completely dominating the South China Sea -- which is what it hopes the CADC will accomplish," Amador told Nikkei Asia.
The Philippines has been slowly rearming, and is in the third phase of material acquisitions. Gen. Romeo Brawner, chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, told reporters in January that the third phase is focused on "acquiring more ships, more aircraft, radars."
Brawner said it will "focus on developing the islands and the other features that we are occupying" to secure the EEZ.
In December, a Japanese-built radar system was installed at an airbase overlooking the West Philippine Sea. In April, the first batch of anti-ship missile systems developed by an Indian-Russian joint venture was reported to have arrived.
Mark Manantan, director of cybersecurity and critical technologies at the Pacific Forum International in Hawaii, told Nikkei that defense acquisitions are essential for the strategic shift because "concepts like CADC will remain abstract." He said the Philippines must explore "innovative ways to fast-track acquisition," including drone technologies.
| Indonesia | Thailand | Philippines | Malaysia | Vietnam | Singapore | |
| Fleet strength | 333 | 293 | 111 | 101 | 97 | 43 |
| Submarines | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 7 |
| Frigates | 8 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 6 |
| Corvettes | 25 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 14 | 6 |
| Patrol vessels | 205 | 49 | 50 | 72 | 54 | 15 |
| Total aircraft | 474 | 501 | 195 | 143 | 226 | 247 |
| Fighter aircraft | 41 | 73 | 0 | 26 | 41 | 100 |
| Dedicated attack | 37 | 18 | 25 | 12 | 33 | 0 |
| Attack helicopters | 15 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| Source: GlobalFirepower.com | ||||||
Manantan said the CADC held "political, economic, social and geopolitical meaning" because the Philippines is "deepening its embrace of its position as a maritime power."
"The mere fact that we have the South China Sea situation today is the result of decades-long neglect of past administrations regarding our identity as a maritime power," he said. "Compared to our neighbors like Vietnam and China, we never internalized the need for maritime capacity building."
Additional reporting from Ella Hermonio.