China ships forcing Philippines to drop Ayungin Shoal: US think tank

Diagrams provided by Amti show Chinese militia vessels shadowing the Philippine Coast Guard’s patrol vessel BRP Cape Engaño (left), hours after a Chinese Coast Guard ship tailed a research vessel from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (right), as both Philippine vessels approached Ayungin Shoal on April 21.

MANILA (Philippine Daily Inquirer/Asia News Network): Chinese coast guard and militia vessels harassed Philippine ships in back-to-back incidents in Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea in April, according to a US think tank.

The two incidents in the Philippine-occupied atoll, which took place several hours apart, were tracked by the Washington-based Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank that closely follows developments in the South China Sea using satellite images and transponder system.