Southeast Asian nations frequently find themselves at the receiving end of the Chinese Coast Guard's assertive tactics. Recently, an Indian Coast Guard ship returning from a goodwill mission to Japan was shadowed by a Chinese Coast Guard vessel as it travelled west of the contested Scarborough Shoal.

Around the same period, Chinese Coast Guard's massive "Monster Ship" confronted Coast Guard ship. In the past few years, the Chinese Coast Guard deployed 1,275 vessels to "protect China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests," has started functioning in "grey areas, " posing a considerable security challenge in the Indo-Pacific.

The Chinese Coast Guard boasts 225 ships exceeding 500 tons, capable of operating in offshore waters alongside additional smaller vessels confined to nearer shores. Notably, China has two of the largest Coast Guard ships in the world, each weighing around 10,000 tons.

The Zhataou-class patrol vessel, the largest armed coast guard cutter, surpasses even the US Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in size. However, it is not just the sheer size of these vessels that concerns neighbouring countries but their aggressive tactics that fall short of outright conflict. This approach has created a persistent challenge for Southeast Asian nations entangled in territorial disputes with China.

Ray Powell, director of SeaLight, a maritime transparency initiative at Stanford University's Gordian Knot Centre for National Security Innovation, in his X post said, "India Coast Guard ship ICGS Shaunak, returning from a goodwill visit to Japan, is shadowed by China Coast Guard 3304 as it passes west of Scarborough Shoal - even as 'monster' ship CCG 5901 engages Philippine Coast Guard BRP Gabriela Silang east of the shoal."

Adding to the complexity, the "Monster Ship" periodically deactivates its AIS (Automatic Identification System), making it difficult to monitor its movements. The CCG 5901, infamous for its formidable presence, recently pursued a Philippine vessel approximately 90 nautical miles west of Luzon within the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). This pursuit, observed by the US Navy’s P-8A Poseidon and MQ-4C Triton aircraft, reflects China's growing assertiveness in contested waters.

The Indian ship, meanwhile, passed through the region within the Philippines' EEZ territory, which China contests. Two other Chinese Coast Guard vessels, CCG 3103 and CCG 3502, were also present, monitoring the Indian vessel as it navigated these zones.

Powell named the Chinese Communist Party “the most sophisticated state gray-zone actor in history.”

China has transformed its Coast Guard into a paramilitary force, significantly expanding its size and capabilities. This paramilitary apparatus includes a growing maritime militia, which operates under the direct control of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). In 2013, China consolidated five civilian maritime agencies into the unified Chinese Coast Guard, also known as Maritime Law Enforcement (MLE). This restructuring aligns with China's rising global power and ambitions.

The Coast Guard has also been transferred from civilian control to the authority of a military commission. Despite a lack of budget, China is increasing the capabilities of its coast guard.

“This civil-military fusion complicates our problem since China is using the ambiguous status of these forces—the white hulls of its coast guard and the veneer of “fishing” for its militia—to provide both deniability and the aforementioned pretext to escalate,” Powell had said this in the past.

Meanwhile, India has recently increased its involvement in the South China Sea. In addition to supplying BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines, India is negotiating deals to export these advanced anti-ship weapons to Indonesia and Vietnam. In June 2023, Vietnam became the first country to receive a fully operational light missile frigate from India. These developments caught China's attention, particularly as tensions between Beijing and Manila continue to escalate.

In August 2023, the Philippine and Indian Coast Guards signed their first Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), fostering enhanced maritime information sharing. This agreement marked a milestone in bilateral relations, as it coincided with the first visit of a Philippine Coast Guard chief to India. The Philippines has shown considerable interest in India’s military technology, including the Advanced Light Helicopter Mk II and indigenously designed warships, reflecting deepening defence ties between the two nations.

China’s “militarisation” of its Coast Guard began in 2007 when two Type 728 cutters were transferred from the PLA Navy to the Coast Guard, becoming the largest vessels in its fleet. In March 2017, China deployed the 12,000-ton CCG 3901 cutter for a patrol in the South China Sea. At 12,000 tons, it is the largest Coast Guard vessel in the world, surpassing even the 9,800-ton Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruisers of the US Navy. This massive cutter, often called the “Monster,” symbolises China’s growing maritime assertiveness.

China’s revised Coast Guard Law, introduced recently, has further escalated tensions. This law grants the Chinese Coast Guard the authority to act when it perceives infringements on the nation’s sovereignty. It permits the use of force, including weapons, against foreign vessels deemed to be illegally entering China’s claimed waters. This development has raised concerns among several nations, including Japan, the Philippines, and the United States. In particular, Japan has expressed apprehension about the potential targeting of its vessels navigating near the Senkaku Islands, given the expanded powers of the Chinese Coast Guard.