REUTERS, Manila

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said yesterday that China’s largest coast guard vessel has anchored in Manila’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, and is meant to intimidate its smaller Asian neighbour.

The China coastguard’s 165-metre ‘monster ship’ entered Manila’s 200-nautical mile EEZ on July 2, spokesperson for the PCG Jay Tarriela told a news forum.

The PCG warned the Chinese vessel it was in the Philippine’s EEZ and asked about their intentions, he said.

“It’s an intimidation on the part of the China Coast Guard,” Tarriela said. “We’re not going to pull out and we’re not going to be intimidated.”

The Chinese ship, which has also deployed a small boat, was anchored 800 yards away from the PCG’s vessel, Tarriela said.

China’s embassy in Manila and the Chinese foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. China’s coast guard has no publicly available contact information.