MANILA, DEC 2 – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos today described the presence of a Russian attack submarine off the country’s coast, in the disputed South China Sea, as ‘extremely worrying’.
According to a Philippine military statement, the submarine UFA 490 was spotted last Thursday, about 148 kilometers west of Cape Calavite.
“Any incursion into the West Philippine Sea, our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), or our base area is very worrisome,” Marcos told reporters.
The Philippines sent an aircraft and a warship to the location of the submarine. The submarine’s crew said they were waiting for good weather before proceeding to Vladivostok, Russia, according to a Philippine Navy statement today.
The spokesman for the Philippine Navy in the South China Sea, Roy Vincent Trinidad, stated that the incident was ‘not alarming’.
“But we were surprised because this is a very unique submarine,” he said AFP.
According to the Russian state news agency, TASS, the 74-meter-long submarine is equipped with a missile system with a firing range of 12,000 kilometers. – AFP
