Tensions between China and the Philippines over the coastal incident in the South Sea claimed by both countries

Tensions rose in Asia on Saturday when a Chinese-flagged Coast Guard ship fired a water cannon at a Philippine supply ship in disputed Asian waters, believed to have caused serious damage and injured the Filipino crew.

According to the Philippine Coast Guard, Manila was trying to resupply troops stationed on a boat at Thomas Shoal II, known as Ayungin in the Philippines: a submerged sand target located in the Spratly Islands. There, Chinese maritime militia “harassed, blocked, deployed water cannons and carried out dangerous maneuvers against the routine rotation and replenishment mission,” the Philippine National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea said.

As Manila reported, the Chinese Coast Guard has also installed a “floating barrier” to block access to the sandbar where the old warship, BRP Sierra Madre, is stranded and which serves as a military outpost. In this context, the Philippine Intervention Force condemned China's “unprovoked aggression, coercion and dangerous maneuvers”, missions that have already been banned on other occasions by the Chinese Coast Guard. However, this is the first time a barrier has been constructed near the sandbar.

However, China claimed that the Philippine supply ship “intruded” into the waters near the bank, which is called the Renai Jiao to the country, “without permission from the Chinese government.” A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated, “The Coast Guard took necessary measures at sea in accordance with the law to protect China's rights, severely obstructed Philippine ships and thwarted the Philippines' attempt.” He stressed that “if the Philippines insists on going its own way, China will continue to take firm measures,” warning that… Manila “must be prepared to bear all possible consequences.”

Why is the area disputed?

The Philippines notes that the situation with China at this geographical point has become increasingly tense, which is why it has decided to take certain measures, such as expanding and reviving its military relations with the United States. The truth is that the sandbar in question is a disputed submerged reef.

The West Philippine Sea is that part of the South China Sea over which Manila claims jurisdiction, and it is there that the Tomas Shoal II River lies, within the country's exclusive economic zone but where China claims historical rights. This sandbank, also known as Ayunjin in the Philippines, Renai Jiao in China, Renai Ancha in Taiwan, or Bai Cai Mai in Vietnam, has been the scene of several similar clashes in recent months and is located about 200 kilometers away. From Palawan Island, west of the Philippines, and more than 1,000 kilometers from Hainan Island, south of China.

The Philippines first acquired it in 1999, establishing a military outpost there with the BRP Sierra Madre, operated by a Marine unit. Although China claims almost the entire South China Sea, an international tribunal ruled in 2016 that the nine-dotted line underlying its claim was unfounded. For this reason, the Philippines claims maritime areas around its coast, as do Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam.

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