SEOUL, South Korea — A familiar powder keg west of the Philippines saw a renewed flare-up Monday as a Philippine unit of two cargo vessels, escorted by two Coast Guard vessels, clashed with the Chinese coast guard, resulting in two collisions and injuries to four Filipino crew members.
The Philippine fleet was attempting to resupply a detachment of marines at a forlorn outpost – a World War II-era vessel named “Sierra Madre” grounded on a reef on the disputed Second Thomas Shoal that Manila says anchors its sovereignty claims in the disputed waters.
Manila’s vessels “faced dangerous maneuvers and blocking from Chinese Coast Guard vessels and Chinese Maritime Militia,” Philippine Coast Guard Commander Jay Tarriela wrote in a social media post after the incident. “Their reckless and illegal actions led to a collision … that resulted in minor structural damage to the [Philippine Coast Guard] vessel.”
The BRP Sindangan of the Philippine Coast Guard had minor structural damage from a collision that happened shortly after dawn, according to the Manila account. Over an hour later, another Chinese coast guard ship first blocked and then crashed into a supply boat the Philippine coast guard was escorting, Philippine officials told the Associated Press.
Dramatic video shared by Cmdr. Tarriela, shot from above, showed two Coast Guard vessels moving on a converging course at high speed. Footage shot at deck level showed Philippine crewmen frantically heaving buoys overboard as the port bow of the Philippine vessel scrapes the starboard bow of the Chinese vessel.
A different piece of bridge footage showed the windshield of a Philippine supply vessel shattering as a Chinese vessel targeted it with a high-powered water cannon. Philippine officials said there were minor injuries from the incident.
Typically for such “gray zone” clashes, no shots were fired and no warships were engaged.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused the Philippines of “infringing on China’s sovereignty and making trouble” in the South China Sea, which is the scene of clashing sovereignty claims by China and countries across East Asia. In response, the ministry said, China’s Coast Guard “took necessary steps in accordance with law, which were professional, restrained, justified and lawful.”
Manila calls the Second Thomas Shoal — the name on English-language charts — “Ayungin.” China calls it “Ren’ai Jiao.”
An international arbitration panel in 2016 found that China, which claims vast swaths of the South China Sea, had no legal claims to the waters it disputes with the Philippines. That has not prevented Beijing from continuing to assert its sovereignty in the area.
With Manila and Washington sharing a mutual defense treaty, there have been concerns raised that U.S. forces could be drawn into clashes resulting from maritime disputes between China and the Philippines.
The government of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. summoned China’s deputy ambassador in Manila to protest Monday’s incident, and the tensions in the South China Sea are expected to be a prime topic of conversation at a summit of leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations with Australian leaders in Melbourne on Wednesday.
• Andrew Salmon can be reached at asalmon@washingtontimes.com.
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