Chinese Warships Approach Northern Luzon During US-Philippine Joint Drills

A Chinese aircraft carrier group, led by the Shandong (CV-17), was spotted operating close to Northern Luzon earlier this week.

The Philippine Navy confirmed the group’s presence and has been closely monitoring their movement ever since.

According to Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, spokesperson for the Philippine Navy (PN) for the West Philippine Sea, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) formation included the Shandong aircraft carrier, six destroyers, and frigates acting as escorts, along with two support vessels, likely tankers or replenishment ships supplying fuel and other essentials.

The large naval group was first detected on April 22, about 100 nautical miles northwest of Burgos, Ilocos Norte.

Trinidad described the formation as one of the “larger or unusual” groupings they have monitored.

By Wednesday evening, the fleet had moved closer, almost entering the western side of Cagayan within the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), with the ships coming as close as three nautical miles to the country’s northern islands.

Despite the proximity, the Philippine Navy said the Chinese naval movement is allowed under international law, specifically under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), as long as the passage is “innocent,” meaning it is continuous and expeditious.

However, the Philippine Navy still carried out standard protocols.

“We always challenge foreign warships passing through our territorial waters or EEZ,” said Trinidad. “This time, we didn’t get any reply.”

He explained that such challenges are normally issued through land-based monitoring systems and that while foreign vessels often respond, there are times they choose not to.

When asked about the origin of the Chinese warships, Trinidad stated that it was likely they came from China’s South Sea Fleet.

The naval group’s presence coincides with the joint US-Philippine military drills, Balikatan, which began on April 21 and are scheduled to run until May 9, 2025.

Over 14,000 troops from both nations are participating to enhance security, interoperability, and regional defense capabilities.

The exercise is taking place across Philippine waters, particularly from Subic Bay to Northern Luzon.

Japan has also joined by sending a naval ship.

Meanwhile, the US has deployed advanced military equipment to the drills, including the NMESIS anti-ship missile system, which will be placed on the Philippine Islands in the Luzon Strait- an area considered crucial to China’s maritime access between its naval bases and the western Pacific.

Satellite imagery showed the Chinese carrier Shandong conducting flight operations in the Philippine Sea with active fighter jets.

This follows earlier drills that the Shandong carried out near Taiwan in late March.

Additionally, the US Navy’s USS Nimitz, another aircraft carrier is also operating in the Philippine Sea.

It recently left Guam and is not officially part of the Balikatan drills, but its presence adds to the military activity in the area.

One of its sailors has been missing since April 18, 2025, the same day the aircraft carrier arrived at Naval Base Guam.

A large-scale search operation was launched to locate him, but he has still not been found.

The Balikatan exercises are a direct expression of the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty between the US and the Philippines, which commits both nations to support each other in the event of external threats.

References: Reuters, PNA

Source: Maritime Shipping News