U.S. condemns 'assertive' actions by China in South China Sea following incident with Philippine vessel.
A Chinese boat bumping into a Philippine supply ship occurred near the Second Thomas Shoal in the contentious Spratly Islands early on a Monday. Both nations, who traded blame for the accident, claim the other is to blame.
China asserts “unquestionable control” over nearly all of the South China Sea, as well as most of the islands and shoals within it, even those that are far from the Chinese mainland. Claims by numerous countries, such as Manila, overlap these claims.
The US embassy in Manila's Washington ambassador, MaryKay Carlson, has publicly criticized China's "hostile and risky tactics," which she claims caused "physical harm" and "damage" to Philippine vessels.
Neither the Philippines nor China reported any injuries or damages as a result of the collision, which takes place just weeks after Filipino President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. threatened that any deadly incident against Filipinos in the South China Sea would come close to an act of war.
Marcos has expressed a desire to strengthen ties with the US, which has consistently emphasized its "unyielding devotion" to a 1951 mutual defense agreement between the US and the Philippines that requires both sides to defend each other if either is threatened by a third party.
This event on Monday is just one of many recent disagreements between Manila and Beijing that have sparked concerns among foreign observers, as China – a global power – may respond more forcefully against the Philippines, possibly leading to an international crisis.
The US State Department's spokesman, Matthew Miller, declared on Monday that the US "disapproves" of China's "escalating and illogical actions."
Similarly, Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and Philippine Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Maria Theresa Lazaro discussed China's "escalating and illogical actions" in a chat on Monday.
China claimed that the Philippine supply ship ignored numerous serious warnings from China, and purposely and recklessly approached a Chinese vessel, causing a collision. However, the Philippine military believes these accusations to be "misleading and manipulative." Instead, the Philippine authorities accuse Chinese ships of "hazardous maneuvers," like "riding and towing" of Filipino ships.
In a statement on X, Philippine army spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla stated that the "primary problem remains to be the illegal presence and activity of Chinese vessels within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, which infringes on our territorial sovereignty and rights."
In 2016, an international court in The Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines in a landmark maritime dispute, which established that China has no legal basis to claim sovereignty over a significant portion of the South China Sea.
Despite this ruling, China has only grown more assertive in its territorial claims in the strategic and resource-rich waters. Over the past year, China Coast Guard ships, accompanied by maritime militia boats, have been involved in numerous skirmishes, resulting in damage to Philippine ships and injuries to Filipino sailors.
The Second Thomas Shoal, which the Philippines refers to as Ayungin Shoal and China as Ren’ai Jiao, is a submerged reef around 200 kilometers (125 miles) from the Philippine island of Palawan. Rich oil and gas resources have been discovered in this uninhabited archipelago, which is also claimed by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan.
The Philippine ship was on a mission to provide supplies to soldiers stationed on the BRP Sierra Madre, a rusted Philippine Navy landing craft that was purposefully beached in 1999 to assert the Philippines' territorial claims over the Second Thomas Shoal.
China Coast Guard spokesperson Gan Yu accused the Philippines of "illegally" delivering supplies to the stranded warship. Gan also stated that the Chinese Coast Guard took actions such as "warnings, interceptions, boarding inspections, and forced evictions" against the Philippine vessel, claiming that China handled the situation in a "reasonable, legal, and professional" manner.
Instead of issuing comments on the collision, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela refrained from providing a comment to CNN, while the Armed Forces of the Philippines chose not to provide any details about the latest confrontation.
In response, Philippine representatives issued broad statements condemning China's actions.
"China's reckless and dangerous behavior in the West Philippine Sea must be opposed by the (Armed Forces of the Philippines.) China's actions contradict their claims of good intentions and respectability." said Philippine Defense Minister Gilberto C. Teodoro, Jr.
"We will do everything necessary to carry out our sworn duty to protect our territorial integrity, sovereignty, and rights. It should now be clear to the international community that China's actions are the true barriers to peace and stability in the South China Sea."
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In light of the ongoing tensions in the South China Sea, the United States has expressed concern over China's assertive actions in the region, which affects not just the Philippines, but also other Asian nations like Japan and South Korea.
Moreover, the escalating tensions in the South China Sea have raised international concerns, particularly in Asia, due to China's expansive claims over most of the islands and shoals within the region, including those closest to the Asian mainland.
