Philippine government authorities are tracking three Chinese naval vessels operating in disputed waters near Mindoro island, according to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Sunday, July 13, 2025.

PCG said its patrol vessel BRP Teresa Magbanua encountered two People’s Liberation Army Navy warships and a China Coast Guard vessel approximately 69 nautical miles from Cabra Island in Occidental Mindoro during routine operations on Saturday.

The Chinese flotilla consisted of PLA Navy warships 793 and 164, along with Coast Guard vessel 4203, all operating within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ), according to the PCG.

PCG officials issued multiple radio challenges throughout the day seeking to determine the Chinese vessels’ intentions.

The PLA Navy warships did not respond, while the Philippine Coast Guard vessel asserted China’s jurisdiction over the area.

“The PCG reminds to these vessels that their operations are taking place within the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines,” PCG said in a statement.

The incident gained additional importance as PCG personnel observed helicopter landing exercises aboard warship 164, with activities continuing throughout the morning hours.

The maritime encounter occurred as the Philippines marked the ninth anniversary of the July 12, 2016 arbitral ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague.

The tribunal unanimously rejected China’s expansive South China Sea claims, including the so-called nine-dash line, and upheld Philippine maritime rights under international law.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement marking the anniversary that “Since the 2016 ruling, China has ignored the decision, continuing to assert unlawful and expansive maritime claims and taking increasingly aggressive actions against its neighbors.”

The US State Department reiterated on the anniversary that “Nine years ago, an Arbitral Tribunal constituted under the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention unanimously ruled China’s expansive South China Sea maritime claims have no basis in international law.”

In February 2025, three Chinese warships sailed through the Mindoro Strait and into the Sulu Sea, while other confrontations have occurred near features such as Scarborough Shoal.

As of Sunday morning, the Teresa Magbanua continued tracking the movement of the three Chinese vessels in the waters off Mindoro.

Photo: courtesy of PCG