The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has denied China’s recent claim that its navy drove away the BRP Apolinario Mabini, a Philippine vessel conducting a patrol near Bajo de Masinloc (BDM), calling the report yet another work of fiction by the Chinese government.
AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Padilla explained that the Philippine Navy’s patrol near Panatag Shoal was part of a routine and regular operation within the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
She further emphasized that the AFP operates under the Philippines’ sovereign rights and does not need to seek permission, contrary to claims made by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
"We sail by right, not by permission... Our Navy is patrolling Philippine Waters. We are conducting our regular patrols," Padilla firmly stated.
"These are just routine patrols. The rest? Just another chapter in CCP's fiction series," she added.
In a separate statement, AFP Public Affairs Chief Col. Xerxes Trinidad asserted that the Philippines holds jurisdiction over the territorial sea of Bajo de Masinloc, which falls within its EEZ, as affirmed by the 2016 Arbitral Award.
Furthermore, the BRP Apolinario Mabini completed its planned mission route, refuting the narrative presented in the press release of China’s PLA Southern Theater Command.
"BDM is an integral part of the Philippine national territory under the Constitution. The Philippines exercises sovereignty over the shoal and its territorial sea. The Philippines also has sovereign rights and jurisdiction in the waters adjacent to the shoal, which form part of the Philippine EEZ," said Trinidad.
