MANILA, Philippines (AP) – Chinese coast guard vessels supported by naval vessels fired heavy artillery fire water cannon Philippine officials said they intercepted and skidded a Philippine patrol boat in a new attack on Wednesday in disputed shoals in the South China Sea.
Three Philippine Coast Guard and Fisheries Department vessels were conducting regular patrols to protect Filipino fishermen. scarborough reef The Philippine Coast Guard said several Chinese coast guard and navy ships approached the area after dawn and took “aggressive actions.”
There was no immediate comment from Chinese authorities. In the past they have repeatedly cited claims such as: China’s sovereignty Their determination to defend what they claim as their territory in disputed offshore areas and despite the 2016 international competition arbitration decision It invalidated China’s historical claims.
The United States condemned China’s “illegal use of water cannons and dangerous operations.” U.S. Ambassador to Manila Mary Kay Carlson said on social media platform X that Chinese operations are disrupting Philippine maritime operations and “putting lives at risk.”
“We condemn these actions and stand with like-minded friends, partners, and allies in supporting a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Carlson said.
The reported Chinese actions in the disputed waters come after a hiatus of more than a month. big storms in succession This has saved many Philippine fishing and commercial vessels from entering dangerous rough seas.
Despite the Chinese vessel’s “reckless” operations, the Philippine Coast Guard and Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Resources said they have renewed their “determination to protect the rights and safety of fishermen within our maritime jurisdiction.”
“We remain vigilant in protecting national interests in the West Philippine Sea,” two Philippine law enforcement agencies said, using the Philippine name for the waters off the archipelago’s west coast.
Philippine Coast Guard Brigadier General Jay Tarriera said China’s maritime exercises “are not standard law enforcement measures,” adding that they “should be construed as an illegal invasion by a violator of international law.”
chinese extensive claims It covers virtually the entire waterway and overlaps with territorial sea, exclusive economic zone, and high seas claims of the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan. Indonesia is also at odds with the Chinese Coast Guard, which supports Beijing’s fishing fleet.
On Wednesday, one of the Philippine ships, the BRP Datu Pagbuaya, was attacked by high-pressure water fired from a Chinese Coast Guard vessel with bow number 3302, about 16 nautical miles (30 km) south of Scarborough off the Manila coast, and its navigational antenna was damaged. targeted. the guard said.
Shortly after, a Chinese Coast Guard ship “deliberately skidded the starboard side of the BRP Datu Pagbuaya” and then “conducted a second water cannon attack on the ship.”
The Philippine Coast Guard vessel BRP Teresa Magbanua “faced interference, tailgating and dangerous maneuvers” by two Chinese Navy and Coast Guard vessels, the statement said. Another Philippine Coast Guard vessel, the BRP Cabra, was “subjected to a reckless maneuver” by a Chinese Coast Guard vessel at a distance of about 300 yards (274 meters), a Philippine Coast Guard official said.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Philippine coast guard and national security officials showed video of Chinese coast guard exercises involving the use of water cannons and close encounters with Philippine vessels.
Long-simmering territorial disputes are a delicate fault line in the U.S.-China conflict in the region. The United States has no claims to the area, which is a key global shipping lane, but declares freedom of navigation and overflight, and the peaceful resolution of disputes, to be its core national interests.
The United States has warned that it has an obligation to protect its treaty ally, the Philippines, if its military is attacked in the South China Sea.
