A Chinese language warship ploughed into its personal coast guard vessel on Monday whereas the latter was chasing a Philippine vessel within the South China Sea, Manila stated.
Philippine coast guard officers had been distributing help to fishermen within the disputed Scarborough Shoal, Commodore Jay Tarriela stated, when the Chinese language coast guard “carried out a dangerous manoeuvre” which inflicted “substantial injury” on the Chinese language warship’s ahead deck.
China confirmed {that a} confrontation befell and accused the Philippines of “forcibly intruding” into Chinese language waters, however didn’t point out the collision.
The South China Sea is on the centre of a territorial dispute between China, the Philippines and different nations.
Tensions between Beijing and Manila have sharply escalated in recent times, with both sides accusing the opposite of provocations and altercations at sea, together with some involving weapons akin to swords, spears and knives.
The Scarborough Shoal, a triangular chain of reefs and rocks, has been a flashpoint between the 2 nations since China seized it in 2012.
Video launched by Manila confirmed a Chinese language coast guard vessel firing water cannons because it chased the Philippine coast guard ship, earlier than slamming loudly right into a a lot bigger Chinese language ship after making a sudden flip.
The collision rendered the Chinese language warship “unseaworthy”, Tarriela stated. It’s unclear if anybody was injured within the incident.
The Philippines Coast Guard has “persistently urged” the Chinese language authorities to respect worldwide conventions in dealing with territorial disputes, “particularly contemplating their position in implementing maritime legal guidelines”, Tarriela stated.
“We have now additionally emphasised that such reckless behaviour at sea may finally result in accidents,” he added.
China’s coast guard, nevertheless, stated it was performing “in accordance with the legislation” and took “all essential measures” to drive the Philippine vessels away.
That is the most recent in a string of harmful encounters over the past two years as Beijing and Manila search to implement their claims on disputed reefs and outcrops within the South China Sea.
In December final 12 months, the Philippines stated China’s coast guard fired water cannons and “sideswiped” a government vessel throughout a maritime patrol close to the Scarborough Shoal.
Beijing initially stated Philippine ships “got here dangerously shut” and that its crew’s actions had been “in accordance with the legislation”. It later accused Manila of constructing “bogus accusations in an try and mislead worldwide understanding”.
In June 2024, Filipino troopers used their “bare hands” to struggle off Chinese language coast guard personnel armed with swords, spears and knives within the space. The skirmish led to at least one Filipino soldier shedding his thumb, Manila stated.
