The Philippine Coast Guard said that China's biggest coastguard vessel had anchored in Manila’s exclusive economic zones (EEZs) in the South China Sea and was meant to intimidate their smaller Asian neighbor.

A PCG spokesperson, Jay Tarriela, told a news conference that the 165-meter "monster ship" of China's coastguard entered Manila's EEZ of 200 nautical miles on July 2.

He said that the PCG informed the Chinese vessel of its presence in Philippine EEZ, and inquired about their intentions.

Tarriela stated that the China Coast Guard was intimidating. "We won't pull out, and we won't be intimidated."

The Chinese embassy in Manila, as well as the Chinese Foreign Ministry did not respond immediately to a comment request. The contact information for China's Coast Guard is not publicly available.

Tarriela stated that the Chinese vessel, which had also deployed a small craft, was 800 yards from PCG's vessel.

In May, the PCG sent a ship to Sabina Shoal to prevent China from reclaiming small areas of land. China denied this claim. China has reclaimed large areas of land in the South China Sea and built military and air force facilities. This has caused concern in Washington, and in other parts of the region.

China claims the majority of the South China Sea as its territory. The South China Sea is a major conduit for ship-borne commerce worth $3 trillion annually. Beijing rejects a 2016 ruling from The Hague's Permanent Court of Arbitration, which stated that its expansive maritime claims lacked legal basis.

After a high-level discussion, the Philippines agreed with China on Tuesday that "restoring trust" and "rebuilding confidence" are necessary to manage maritime disputes better.

The Philippines turned down US offers, despite an escalation of tensions with China regarding the routing of resupply missions for Filipino troops on the disputed shoal.