Recto Bank or Reed Bank is just 80 nautical miles from the famous island of El Nido in northern Palawan, the bank is believed to have the richest deposits of oil and natural gas in the entire Spratly group of islands in the West Philippine Sea. According to an ABS-CBN report, Chinese Survey ships were spotted near the Recto Bank in the past few days.
Watch the Video Report from ABS-CBN:
Recto Bank is also located just 37 nautical miles from the Philippines major source of natural gas, the Malampaya Natural Gas in Palawan which already contributed million of dollars to the Philippine economy.
The presence of the Chinese Navy and their survey ship posed danger to the Philippines according to former National Security Adviser Roilo Golez.
According to Rep. Roilo Golez, the visits of Chinese vessels in the areas of the Recto Bank could mean that China had plans for the Recto Bank, one of the territories in the Spratly Islands that is clearly within the 200 nautical miles Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Philippines.
The former National Security Adviser noted that a survey ship, normally this kind of ships is used to map the bottom of the sea and Recto Bank is rich in natural resources.
