The government successfully carried out the resupply of its troops guarding the Ayungin Shoal without any incident despite the presence of Chinese paramilitary ships nearby, the Armed Forces Western Command (Wescom) said on Thursday.
The operation was in a sharp contrast with the incident in June this year wherein the Chinese Coast Guard harassed the boat bringing supplies to the Filipino troops who were securing the shoal aboard the partly-sunken BRP Sierra Madre.
The Joint Task Force West of the Wescom successfully resupplied the troops with food supplies, water, medicines and other supplies as well as maintenance and repair equipment needed by the Philippine ship and her crew on Wednesday, Wescom spokesman Major Cherryl Tindog said.
“The Philippine Navy-contracted commercial boats safely entered and exited Ayungin Shoal using its usual entry and exit points. This is the third consecutive resupply activity undertaken by the government with neither any escort nor untoward incident,” she added.
Tindog said Wednesday’s mission was also the third resupply that was carried out by the military for the Marine forces aboard the Sierra Madre under the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., who had earlier declared the country will not give away any inch of the territory.
The Commander-in-Chief was referring to the Kalayaan Island Group and the West Philippine Sea (WPS), which are being disputed by China.
Just days before former President Rodrigo Duterte left office, China bamboozled the Philippine military’s effort to bring supplies to its troops in Ayungin by mounting a fishing net and guarding the shoal’s entrance with ships.
The resupply mission went unimpeded several days later after the government issued a volley of protests. -30-