By Focus | 2025-09-01

The Philippines has vowed to sustain its troops aboard the grounded BRP Sierra Madre at Second Thomas Shoal, also known as Ayungin Shoal in the Philippines and Renai Jiao in China, despite Beijing's escalating maritime presence.

Manila insists that resupply missions will continue and that the marines aboard the vessel will not be forced off it.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) confirmed on August 28 that a Chinese navy tugboat, which had raised concerns over the possible towing of the Sierra Madre, has departed the shoal, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

"The tugboat was not sighted anymore… After [August 26] it was no longer seen," Philippine navy spokesperson Rear Adm. Roy Vincent Trinidad said. He stressed that "it will take more than a tugboat to tow" the ship.

It has been firmly anchored since 1999 to demonstrate Manila's presence in disputed waters. A small garrison of marines stays aboard the ship.

Manila framed the tugboat's departure as a demonstration of Philippine resilience in holding onto the Sierra Madre.

The AFP reported a surge of Chinese vessels around the shoal on August 20. The deployment included five China Coast Guard ships, 11 fast boats armed with heavy weapons, nine maritime militia boats as well as a helicopter and a drone.

"It's unusual for [China] to test their water cannons, to show what appeared to be a covered heavy machine gun and to drop fishing nets that can impede watercraft," Trinidad told reporters in a phone interview, as reported by Inquirer.net on August 23. Philippine troops quickly removed the nets.

Dangerous maneuvering

China's actions included close approaches to Philippine vessels and the use of water cannons, raising fears of escalation.

AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. underscored the importance of keeping Filipino marines on the Sierra Madre.

The outpost symbolizes Philippine sovereignty in its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), he said. "Even if we are just on rubber boats against bigger ships, we will continue to push them outward because we won't allow them to get close," he said.

Manila vowed to push ahead with resupply missions. These operations are "routine humanitarian missions" conducted under Philippine sovereignty, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

"The rotation and reprovisioning of our forces [are] a moral obligation of the leadership of the Armed Forces. Regardless of any threat, any coercive or aggressive action, it will be conducted," said Trinidad.

The death of a Filipino would mark a "red line" for the AFP, said Brawner. "If someone dies, a Filipino, that is the red line. We are always ready for any eventuality."

He ordered troops to prevent any Chinese boarding attempt.

Escalation of tensions

Local media quoted Trinidad as saying that Chinese vessels near the shoal had risen from an average of seven militia and two coast guard vessels to 20 on August 20, before dropping slightly to 13 militia, two coast guard ships and one navy tugboat by August 25.

Philippine officials linked the surge in Chinese deployments to regional tensions that followed a collision between two Chinese vessels at Scarborough Shoal earlier in August.

The Chinese behavior and territorial claims "are a matter not only of concern, but of condemnation because these are gross violations of international law," Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said on August 22 in a joint news conference in Manila with his visiting Australian counterpart, Richard Marles.

Philippine missions to resupply the Sierra Madre violate Chinese sovereignty, says Beijing.

Manila stands its ground

The vessel is a lawful outpost within the Philippine EEZ, Manila says.

It cites on its side a 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration ruling under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Over 60% of global maritime trade, worth more than $3 trillion annually, passes through the South China Sea. Beijing claims almost all of the strategic waterway despite conflicting claims by Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.

Manila says it remains committed to protecting its sovereignty, ensuring resupply for the Sierra Madre garrison and resisting pressure from Beijing's maritime forces.

Brawner praised the endurance of Philippine marines staying on the Sierra Madre. "What our soldiers are doing in BRP Sierra Madre is difficult… and yet they continue to serve with dignity."