MANILA, Philippines—The Chinese coast guard targeted Philippine vessels with water cannon blasts on Sunday and rammed one of them, causing damage and endangering Filipino crew members off a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, Philippine officials said.
The Philippines and its treaty ally, the United States, condemned the latest clash near the Second Thomas Shoal, where two Philippine navy supply boats and two Philippine coast guard escort ships had sailed to deliver food and other supplies to Filipino forces in a long-marooned navy ship serving as a territorial outpost.
“We condemn, once again, China’s latest unprovoked acts of coercion and dangerous maneuvers against a legitimate and routine Philippine rotation and resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal that has put the lives of our people at risk,” a Philippine government task force that deals with the territorial disputes said in a statement, using the Filipino name for the shoal.
The Chinese coast guard's high-pressure water cannon blasts disabled and severely damaged the engines of the Philippine supply boat M/L Kalayaan, which had to be towed back to the western Philippine province of Palawan, according to Philippine officials, who added that the action put the crew's lives in grave danger.
The BRP Cabra, one of two Philippine coast guard escort ships, sustained mast damage as a result of the water cannon blast. Another supply boat was hit by a Chinese coast guard ship but managed to escape and provide supplies to Filipino marines at Second Thomas Shoal, according to the report.
The Philippine Coast Guard released drone video footage and images showing two Chinese coast guard ships discharging water cannons at close range at BRP Cabra and a smaller supply boat.
“The systematic and consistent manner in which the People’s Republic of China carries out these illegal and irresponsible actions puts into question and significant doubt the sincerity of its calls for peaceful dialogue,” it said. “We demand that China demonstrate that it is a responsible and trustworthy member of the international community.”
The Chinese coast guard stated that it had "implemented controls in accordance with laws and regulations." The statement provided no information on the measures taken but stated that the Philippines' actions "seriously infringed on China's sovereignty."
It further alleged that a Philippine vessel ignored warnings and, in violation of international navigation standards, performed a rapid turn in a "unprofessional and dangerous manner" before colliding with a Chinese coast guard ship, inflicting "scratching."
"The entire responsibility lies entirely with the Philippine side," the coast guard stated.
China's activities, according to Coast Guard spokeswoman Gan Yu, are "reasonable, legal, and professional," and such operations will continue uninterrupted.
Foreign diplomats in the Philippines, including ambassadors from treaty partners the United States, the European Union, and Japan, sharply opposed China's activities.
“The U.S. stands with the Philippines and partners in vehemently condemning the PRC’s repeated illegal and dangerous actions against vessels,” U.S. Ambassador MaryKay L. Carlson posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
China's ships have ringed the Philippine-occupied Second Thomas Shoal for years, obstructing Philippine coast guard and supply boats in a years-long drive to seize control of the contentious atoll claimed by both nations.
All international censure and legal action have been rejected by the Chinese communist party, including a 2016 verdict by a U.N.-backed arbitration panel that invalidated the Chinese state's claims, leaving them without legal basis. The Chinese leadership maintains that it has the legal right to "defend its sovereignty" over almost the entire South China Sea, one of the world's most important waterways for commerce and other marine activity.
The Chinese coast guard and supporting ships also focused water cannons on three Philippine fisheries vessels on Saturday to prevent them from reaching Scarborough Shoal in the contested waters off the northwestern Philippines.
According to Philippine officials, this caused "significant damage" to one of the three Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources vessels' communication and navigation systems. They went on to say that suspected militia vessels escorting Chinese coast guard ships deployed a long-range sonic gadget that might damage hearing, inflicting "severe temporary discomfort and incapacitation to some Filipino crew."
In previous high-seas skirmishes this year, Chinese coast guard ships employed a military-grade laser to temporarily blind Filipino crewmen and participated in risky blocking and shadowing operations that resulted in small accidents, according to Philippine officials.
“The Philippines will not be deterred from exercising our legal rights over our maritime zones,” the Philippine government task force said.
A fleet of 40 civilian fishing boats, escorted by Philippine coast guard ships, was its approach to Second Thomas Shoal on Sunday but chose to first deliver Christmas food boxes to two Philippine-occupied islets in the South China Sea.
Organizers will reconsider before proceeding with a plan to sail near the Second Thomas Shoal, according to Rafaela David, one of the organizers who condemned the recent Chinese move.
