See the rusting warship central to the Philippines' South China Sea claims that Beijing tries to keep from holding on

• BRP Sierra Madre has been grounded near the Second Thomas Shoal for 24 years. 
• The Second Thomas Shoal is a contested part of the South China Sea that both China and the Philippines claim. 
• China has recently been seen using aggressive tactics against resupply ships headed to the Sierra Madre. 

The ship BRP Sierra Madre, stagnant and slowly decaying, sits near the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea as an unlikely last defense for the Philippines against an encroaching Chinese claim on part of the strategic waterway.