MANILA: The Philippines has labeled China as an “aggressor” and accused it of heightening tensions in the South China Sea while alleging that China caused the collision that resulted in damage to one of Manila’s supply boats during a recent mission.
A collision occurred on Sunday when a Chinese coast guard ship came into contact with one of Manila’s smaller wooden supply boats. Fortunately, no injuries were reported, but the incident has garnered international criticism and drawn expressions of concern from the United States.
During a joint news conference on Monday, Philippine foreign ministry spokesperson Teresita Daza stated, “All incidents like this will support the argument that the aggressor is not the Philippines, but the other party, which is China.”
China’s coast guard reported on Sunday that there was a “slight collision” between one of its ships and the Philippine boat while it was “legally” preventing the boat from transporting “illegal construction materials.”
This is not the first instance of China’s coast guard, supported by its maritime militia boats, interfering with the Philippines’ supply missions. On August 5, a Chinese coast guard ship used a water cannon against a supply boat.
The regular supply missions are intended for Philippine troops stationed aboard the BRP Sierra Madre, a former warship that Manila grounded on the Second Thomas Shoal in 1999 to assert its territorial claims.
The shoal, known as Ayungin in Manila and Renai Reef in China, falls within the Philippines’ 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. convened a security meeting on Monday to address “the latest violation by China” and directed the country’s coast guard to investigate the incident, which his office stated “is being taken seriously at the highest level of government.”
Under Marcos, tensions between China and the Philippines have escalated, with the President voicing concerns about Beijing’s aggressive conduct and seeking closer ties with traditional ally, the United States.
Maritime confrontations between Manila and Beijing have become a recurring feature in the South China Sea as both nations assert their territorial claims in the strategically significant waters.
The Philippines has called on China to cease its “illegal” and “provocative” actions in the South China Sea, emphasizing the need for respect for the 2016 ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which determined that China’s expansive claims lacked legal validity.
One of the images released by the Philippine coast guard displayed four supply boats engaged in the mission on Sunday, surrounded by seven larger Chinese coast guard vessels.
Jonathan Malaya, spokesperson for the Philippines’ National Security Council, stated that China’s actions were responsible for Sunday’s collision, even as the Chinese embassy in Manila claimed that the Philippine vessels were “trespassing” in the shoal.
“We are relieved and thankful that no Filipino personnel were harmed. But we are concerned by the escalation and provocations by Chinese vessels, who have no business being in the West Philippine Sea,” said Malaya.
Source: Reuters
