A Chinese aircraft flew within 3 meters of a Spanish patrol aircraft near Scarborough Shoal on February 19; a further, more dangerous incident occurred, according to the Philippine Coast Guard.
Then there’s the issue of Chinese Coast Guard ships having been lingering between Scarborough Shoal and north Luzon’s Exclusive Economic Zone since January. While within Beijing’s nine-dash range, the area is far more than 100 kilometers from any contested territory.
Beijing and Manila exchanged charges following instances near Scarborough Shoal in the air and at sea in March and April.
NATIONAL DOMAIN OF Tracking
The Foreign Coast Guard, the largest white-hull force in the world, rivals the navy’s “grey vessels,” in terms of sea companies in the Philippines. Spanish organizations are contesting Chinese actions and reporting incidents, citing President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s pledge that” not a square foot of Asian country is surrendered to any unusual power,” in contrast to Duterte’s name.
The South China Sea’s National FONOPs are included in math. By asserting transportation right and operating military warships in contested waters, they challenge China’s extra-legal states in the South China Sea.
The second Trump administration put the FONOP program on hold in 2017 as president vowed to eke out a dialogue with Xi Jinping, the president’s Chinese counterpart.
There hasn’t been a public disclosure of FONOP in the South China Sea since December 6, 2024, at the time of reading.