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A Philippine Coast Guard ship tows a Filipino resupply vessel following damages due to water cannon from a Chinese Coast Guard ship as tensions escalate between China and the Philippines over a boat-ship collision in the South China Sea in the disputed Second Thomas Shoal. (Image: Reuters)
Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Beijing’s actions have strengthened Filipino resolve to safeguard its sovereignty and its borders.
The Philippines condemned China for its recent actions in the South China Sea on Monday and urged Beijing to exercise restraint to preserve regional stability following tensions between both nations over the weekend. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. termed China’s actions using “China Coast Guard and Chinese Maritime Militia” as “aggression and provocations”.
The Philippines’ National Security Council spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said Beijing’s actions constitute “a serious escalation” in the West Philippine Sea (using the Philippine term for the disputed region in the South China Sea).
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Beijing’s actions have steeled their determination to defend and protect the nation’s sovereignty on Sunday. In a strongly worded statement on social media site X, Marcos said any foreign claims on sovereignty over Ayungin Shoal are baseless.
“The aggression and provocations perpetrated by the China Coast Guard and their Chinese Maritime Militia against our vessels and personnel over the weekend have only further steeled our determination to defend and protect our nation’s sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea,” Marcos said.
On Saturday, the Philippines alleged that China Coast Guard shot water cannons at Philippine civilian vessels near the Scarborough Shoal that were carrying oil and food for the fisherfolk in the sea.
On Sunday, the Philippines again said China used water cannons and rammed Manila’s vessels which were en route to Ayungin Shoal on a resupply mission. The nation’s coast guard said that “Chinese aggression” on Sunday left one of its ships with “severe engine damage”.
“Let me reiterate what is settled and widely recognized: Ayungin Shoal is within our Exclusive Economic Zone, any foreign claim of sovereignty over it is baseless and absolutely contrary to international law. Bajo de Masinloc is sovereign Philippine territory and an integral part of our archipelago. No one but the Philippines has a legitimate right or legal basis to operate anywhere in the West Philippine Sea. The illegal presence in our waters and dangerous actions against our citizens is an outright and blatant violation of international law and the rules-based international order,” he further added.
China on Monday said responsibility for the incidents lies with the Philippines. The Chinese foreign ministry urged Manila to “stop provocations” and take China’s concerns seriously.
China blamed Philippines coast guards and vessels claiming that they ignored warnings and one vessel “made an unprofessional and dangerous sudden turn” and intentionally rammed the “Chinese” vessel.
Manila said Beijing disrupted its routine resupply missions to Chinese military outposts in the South China Sea. Parts of some of those outposts also trespass into the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
The Philippines’ department of foreign affairs slammed China for violating the nation’s “sovereignty and jurisdiction”. “(Their actions) are a threat to peace, good order, and security,” they said, accusing Beijing of violating the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which Beijing signed in 1982.
The Chinese envoy to the Philippines was also summoned over the incidents.
The US also slammed China and asked it not to undermine regional stability. “These actions reflect not only reckless disregard for the safety and livelihoods of Filipinos but also for international law,” the Biden administration said Monday.
Marcos and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Meeting in San Francisco in November and the former said he and Xi “tried to come up with mechanisms to ease tensions in [the] South China Sea”. No specific measures were announced by either Manila or Beijing.
(with inputs from Nikkei Asia)
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