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PH Coast Guard adds more patrol vessels in West PH Sea after latest incident with China

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ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA - Following the recent incident at Ayungin Shoal, the Philippine Coast Guard&#x27;s Task Force Pag-Asa said it has increased the number of its patrol vessels in the West Philippine Sea.</p><p>According to PCG, this is also to ensure the safety of Filipino fisherfolk, following the January 9 incident, where the Chinese Coast Guard reportedly drove away a Filipino fishing boat in Ayungin Shoal.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/01/21/23/china-coast-guard-drives-away-pinoy-fishing-boat-near-ayungin-shoal">China coast guard drives away Filipino fishing boat near Ayungin Shoal</a></li></ul><p>Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Jaime Bautista and PCG Commandant CG Admiral Artemio Abu said the PCG will continue to follow rules-based approaches in ensuring the security of the country&#x27;s Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ).</p><p>Armed Forces of the Philippines Spokesperson Col. Medel Aguilar said the incident is now being attended to by the PCG.</p><p>ABS-CBN News has reached out to the Chinese Embassy to get its statement on the Ayungin Shoal incident but it has yet to respond.</p><p>The incident happened after Manila and Beijing agreed to establish a &quot;direct communication line&quot; in case of maritime incidents like this in the West Philippine Sea. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/12/29/22/philippines-china-to-ink-deal-for-direct-communication-on-west-ph-sea">Philippines, China to ink deal for &#x27;direct communication&#x27; on West PH Sea</a></li></ul><p>Beijing claims sovereignty over almost the entire area despite an international court ruling that its claim has no legal basis.</p><p>The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei have overlapping claims to parts of the sea, and Manila ordered its military last month to boost its presence after a report that China had started reclaiming several unoccupied land features around the Spratly Islands.</p><p>Taiwan also lays claim to parts of the sea.</p><div><strong> Report from Robert Mano, ABS-CBN News</strong></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2428661" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

The Philippine Coast Guard said it has added more patrol vessels in the West Philippine Sea after the Chinese Coast Guard reportedly drove away Filipino fishermen from Ayungin Shoal.