30 Chinese ships spotted in 4 WPS features
Philippine News Agency
By Priam Nepomuceno
November 25, 2025, 5:02 pm
MANILA -- A total of 30 Chinese military and coast guard ships were monitored off four Philippine-held features in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), a ranking Philippine Navy (PN) official said Tuesday.
In a press briefing in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, PN spokesperson for the WPS, Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, said that based on their monitoring as of 5 p.m. on Monday, there were four People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) ships and eight China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels off Bajo de Masinloc.
One PLAN ship and six CCG vessels were seen off Ayungin Shoal, while one PLAN ship and five CCG vessels were spotted in Escoda Shoal, Trinidad said.
"And Pag-asa Island, no PLAN (vessels) and five CCG (ships)," he added.
No details were given as to when exactly the ships were spotted, or how far they were from the four WPS features.
"This is as of 1700 yesterday (5 p.m. Monday). We expect these numbers (to) go down when the typhoon hits the WPS," Trinidad said, referring to Tropical Depression Verbena, which is expected to traverse the WPS.
He said that although there were no coercive actions on the part of the Chinese ships, their presence in the area is "illegal."
The WPS is part of the vast South China Sea (SCS), which Beijing claims entirely as its own.
However, in 2016, the Philippines won a landmark international arbitration case against China, invalidating its ambitious claim over the SCS, a ruling Beijing has vehemently disregarded.
Trinidad emphasized that the PN is always patrolling and monitoring the WPS along with the Philippine Air Force (PAF).
"At any time, we have an ongoing patrol on air and the sea by the PN and the PAF," he said. "The patrol plans are under the cognizance of (the) Northern Luzon Command and Western Command." (PNA)
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