The Philippines on Monday accused Chinese coastguard vessels of intentionally colliding with its vessels on a resupply mission in a disputed part of the South China Sea, as ties deteriorated between the Southeast Asian U.S. ally and Beijing.
Both sides traded accusations after the latest incident on Sunday, which was the most serious yet in the waters around the disputed Second Thomas shoal, though no one was harmed.
China said on Sunday that the Philippine boats “bumped dangerously” with the coastguard vessels and Chinese fishing vessels, while China’s embassy in Manila said it had lodged stern representations to the Philippines over its vessels trespassing, and called on the Philippines government to stop “causing trouble and provocation” at sea and to stop smearing China’s reputation with “groundless attacks”.
Officials from the Philippine national security council, coastguard, foreign ministry, defence ministry and armed forces condemned the actions of the Chinese coastguard.
“Chinese Coast Guard and maritime militia vessels, in blatant violation of international law, harassed and intentionally hit Manila’s supply boat and coastguard ship. This is a serious escalation of the illegal activities conducted by the Chinese government in the West Philippine Sea in complete disregard of any norm or convention of international law,” Philippines Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told a news conference.
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