A Russian Kilo-class submarine UFA 490 is spotted 80 nautical miles from Mindoro island on November 28, 2024. Photo: AFP

A Russian submarine was spotted around 80 nautical miles (148km) off an island of the Philippines on Thursday. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. claimed the incident "very worrisome," while the Philippine National Security Council (NSC) spokesperson calling "the Russian ship is exercising freedom of navigation technically."

The Russian Kilo-class submarine was spotted around 80 nautical miles (148km) off the island of Mindoro on Thursday, Russia media outlet RT reported, citing Philippine Navy spokesman Roy Vincent Trinidad in a statement on Monday. 

The Russian submarine identified itself in response to a Philippine navy two-way radio inquiry, saying it was on route home to Russia's eastern city of Vladivostok after joining an exercise with the Malaysian navy, the Associated Press reported on Monday, citing Jonathan Malaya, assistant director-general of the Philippine's NSC. 

In a chance interview Philippine President Marcos told reporters that "any intrusion… of our exclusive economic zone, of our baseline is very worrisome," the Manila Times reported.

Marcos did not say what the government intends to do but said he would "let the military discuss" the matter, according to the report.

However, the NSC downplayed the incident, according to Philippine media outlet the Inquirer on Tuesday.

Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya, NSC spokesperson, said during a news briefing that any foreign vessel can be assumed to be legally exercising its freedom of navigation as long as it "does not loiter or is not engaged in gathering of natural resources or any other illegal activity such as a marine scientific survey," according to the report.

"Let me just emphasize that the part of the waters where it was spotted is not within the territorial seas of the Philippines. It may be in the high seas of the exclusive economic zone (EEZ), so technically, the Russian ship is exercising freedom of navigation," Malaya added.

The submarine, like other foreign ships, has the right of "innocent passage" in the country's exclusive economic zone, Malaya said, cited by AP report.

Russia's embassy in Manila and the Philippine foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests to comment on the matter, the Manila Times said on Tuesday.

As of press time, Global Times reporters didn't see official response from Russian side, and there aren't many discussions among the Russian mainstream media about this incident hyped by the Philippine media.

Global Times