MANILA, Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) announced on Friday, November 15, that it had completed a resupply mission to the BRP Sierra Madre in the West Philippine Sea.

This is the third mission to the West Philippine Sea flashpoint since Manila and Beijing reached a provisional agreement meant to avoid incidents near Ayungin Shoal, where the Navy vessel has been aground since 1999.

In a short release to the media, the AFP said the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) supported the mission to bring supplies and rotate troops to the Sierra Madre on November 14. “There were no untoward incidents during the mission,” the AFP said.

“The AFP continues to uphold its mandate of safeguarding Philippine sovereignty and ensuring the welfare of its stationed personnel in the West Philippine Sea,” the military added.

Ayungin Shoal is a low-tide elevation located just over 100 nautical miles, or an hours-long journey via military or coast guard vessel, from Palawan. It’s a feature that’s within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ), and where the military has kept watch in since the Sierra Madre was ran aground during the presidency of Joseph Estrada.

Close to Ayungin is a military base that China created from what used to be Mischief Reef. Beijing’s development of Mischief is why the Philippines ran the BRP Sierra Madre aground in the first place.

Ayungin, or Second Thomas Shoal, has been the venue of incidents between the Philippines and China, with the China Coast Guard (CCG) resorting to violence — from dangerous manuevers to the use of water cannons — to drive Philippine missions away.

In June 2024, CCG personnel brandished bladed weapons and boarded and destroyed Philippine Navy boats in what is, so far, the tensest confrontation between the two countries in that part of the West Philippine Sea. A month later, the two countries announced a “provisional arrangement” that would, it was hoped, avoid violent incidents during resupply missions to Ayungin Shoal.

China claims almost all of the South China Sea, and does not recognize a 2016 Arbitral Award that affirmed the Philippines’ maritime entitlements in an area it calls the West Philippine Sea. — Rappler.com