China, Philippines vessels collide in South China Sea

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Vessels from China and the Philippines collided in disputed waters of the South China Sea on Tuesday, a video shared by Manila showed.

The “reckless and illegal actions” of the China Coast Guard “led to a collision” that caused “minor structural damage” to a Filipino MRRV-4407 vessel, a Filipino Coast Guard officer Jay Tarriela claimed in his statement posted on X, along with a video and photos.

The China Coast Guard, however, said in a statement that it “lawfully took control measures” against the Filipino vessel after “illegally entering the waters adjacent to Ren'ai Jiao in the Nansha Islands.”

Tarriela identified the Chinese Coast Guard vessel as 21555.

The collision of rival vessels occurred after weeks of tensions between Beijing and Manila over maritime claims in the mineral-rich South China Sea.

Beijing and Manila have conflicting claims over the Second Thomas Shoal, also known as Ayungin Shoal, Bai Co May, and Ren'ai Jiao, which is a submerged reef in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.

Nansha Islands is part of the Spratly Islands.

According to Tarriela, the Philippines Coast Guard had deployed two vessels -- BRP CABRA and BRP SINDANGAN -- to “support the Rotation and Reprovisioning Operation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.”

“Throughout the operation,” the Filipino officer claimed that the Philippines Coast Guard “faced dangerous maneuvers and blocking from Chinese Coast Guard vessels and Chinese Maritime Militia.”

The incident occurred a day after Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Manila would not budge on its sovereignty rights in the South China Sea, also known as the West Philippine Sea.

"Illegal actions continue to infringe on our sovereignty," Marcos said at an event hosted by the Lowy Institute think tank in Australia.

“We shall never surrender even a square inch of our territory and our maritime jurisdiction,” Marcos stressed, reiterating that Manila will continue to engage Beijing through dialogue and diplomacy.

Marcos is in Melbourne for a special summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Australia, where maritime disputes in the South China Sea are expected to be discussed.

In Beijing, China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Monday: “China’s position on the issue of the South China Sea is consistent and clear.”

“The reason behind the recent situation at sea is that the Philippines has frequently made provocative moves in the South China Sea, infringing on China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests,” Mao said, adding that Beijing has “taken necessary measures in accordance with the law to defend its own sovereignty, rights and interests.”

“There is no such situation of China ‘harassing’ the Philippines,” she added.

The tensions at sea coincide with the start of China's National People's Congress session in Beijing on Tuesday.

In his government work report, Chinese Premier Li Qiang told nearly 3,000 deputies that the country’s armed forces “will strengthen all-around military training and combat readiness, make well-coordinated efforts to improve military preparedness, and devote great energy to training under combat conditions, so as to firmly safeguard China’s national sovereignty, security, and development interests.”