The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) successfully disrupted unauthorized marine scientific research by a Chinese survey vessel off the coast of Itbayat, Batanes, compelling the foreign ship to abandon its position within the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) on Thursday.
PCG deployed its 97-meter flagship vessel, BRP Teresa Magbanua, along with an Islander aircraft to challenge the Chinese-flagged research vessel Jia Hai Ke 7, which had been loitering approximately 37 nautical miles northwest of Itbayat since September 28.
According to maritime authorities, BRP Teresa Magbanua closed in to within 100 yards of the foreign ship and launched a rigid-hull inflatable boat to issue direct radio challenges and disrupt the vessel’s operations. A China Coast Guard vessel later arrived at the scene in an attempt to position itself near the survey ship.
”The sustained presence of Teresa Magbanua and the Islander aircraft disrupted Jia Hai Ke 7’s activities and compelled the vessel to leave its position,” the Philippine Coast Guard stated in a report.
The PCG noted that the Chinese research ship began moving north at a speed of around 8.5 kilometers per hour shortly before noon, escorted and shadowed by BRP Teresa Magbanua to ensure its complete departure from the Philippine EEZ.
Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), coastal states hold exclusive jurisdiction over marine scientific research within their respective EEZs, requiring formal prior consent for any foreign survey activities.