Huangyan Island has once again seen intense confrontation, with the Philippines deploying a large number of ships and aircraft, and Chinese naval guns' crosshairs locking onto a target, almost opening fire!
Since January 26, the Philippine side has launched a large-scale intrusion near the Huangyan Island, deploying three coast guard ships: the 8301 ship, the 4408 boat, the 4409 boat, one "Cessna" C208 reconnaissance aircraft, and an auxiliary ship from the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Bureau, "Mamalakaya", continuously patrolling around the Huangyan Island for several days.
The Philippine side claimed that this move was to "protect fishing", i.e., to provide support for 40 to 50 Philippine fishing boats operating within its so-called exclusive economic zone. However, the actual situation is far more complicated than "fishing protection." According to publicly available Automatic Identification System (AIS) vessel tracking data and data from the South China Sea Situation Awareness Platform, the Philippine vessels were not just loitering on the periphery. Among them, the 4408 boat approached as close as about 31 nautical miles north of the Huangyan Island.
Faced with this round of intensive deployment by the Philippines, China responded quickly and firmly. Multiple law enforcement ships, including the China Coast Guard's 2307 ship, 3105 ship, and 3106 ship, arrived at the scene immediately, using various measures such as close monitoring, verbal warnings, and tactical displacement, effectively curbing the Philippine side's attempt to approach the core area of the island reef.
Notably, there are on-site images showing that the deck gun of a Chinese coast guard ship was in a combat-ready state, with the optical sighting system's crosshair clearly locked onto a Philippine coast guard boat - such a high alert posture is extremely rare in law enforcement confrontations during peacetime. The next step would be to open fire and sink it. Faced with China's strict defense, the Philippines could not find a breakthrough and could only helplessly linger on the scene.
Manila has recently frequently invited the U.S. military to use newly established military bases. This action at Huangyan Island may be a signal released in conjunction with the upcoming U.S.-Philippines joint military exercises. Dao Ge believes that the photo of the Chinese naval gun's crosshair locking onto a target was not just bluffing but a real warning: Not a single inch will be given up at Huangyan Island.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1855798984795268/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.