The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) maintains that China has not carried out any activity geared towards gaining control over Sandy Cay, hence, its claims of having taken control of the area are baseless.
Routine maritime patrol and verification by the Western Command has confirmed this, according to the AFP Public Affairs Office.
Earlier, Beijing’s state media announced that China has established control over Sandy Cay 2, which is within 12 nautical miles from Pag-asa Island.
However, in a press conference, AFP Spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea (WPS) Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad said such activities would be easily spotted in an area only a few kilometers from Philippine territory inhabited by locals.
“Sandy Cay is only approximately 3 kilometers from Pag-asa. It is within monitoring distance by our forces stationed on the island. And, as mentioned by the NTF (National Task Force) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), there (was) no presence whatsoever monitored when we sent the Inter-Agency team to Sandy Cay,” Trinidad said.
This statement follows an inter-agency operation wherein the Joint Task Unit Pag-Asa waved the Philippine flag in Cays 1 to 4.
The Philippine Navy, alongside the PCG and Philippine National Police (PNP) Maritime Group, is monitoring the presence of a China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel and seven Chinese maritime militia vessels near the area.
