A confrontation between ships from China and the Philippines in the contested South China Sea has resulted in a collision, with each party blaming the other for the incident. The collision occurred on Monday morning at 3:24 AM local time (19:24 GMT on Sunday) near Sabina Shoal, located approximately 140 kilometers west of the Philippine island of Palawan, the nearest major landmass.
A spokesperson for the Chinese Coast Guard, Gan Yu, accused the Philippines of “illegally” entering the waters around the disputed atoll and deliberately colliding with the Chinese vessel. “The Chinese Coast Guard took control measures against the Philippine vessels in accordance with the law,” said Gan.
The Spratly Islands in the South China Sea are also claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam and lie over 1,300 kilometers from Hainan Island in China. However, Manila’s national task force for the West Philippine Sea disputed the Chinese account. They claim that it was China that caused the incident and that Beijing’s vessels conducted “illegal and aggressive maneuvers” near the banks, resulting in damage to two of their coast guard vessels.
The confrontation “resulted in collisions that caused structural damage to both Philippine coast guard vessels,” they stated, sharing images showing the damage to the ships. Manila reported that the coast guard vessels – Cape Engano and Bagacay – were en route to resupply personnel stationed on Flat Island when the collision occurred. Aside from damage to Cape Engano, it was noted that Bagacay “was hit twice” by a Chinese coast guard ship, resulting in “minor structural damage.”
“The Philippine Coast Guard stands firm in its responsibility to ensure the safety of our maritime domain while addressing threats to our national interests,” they stated in a declaration.
Tensions between Manila and Beijing have escalated as China claims nearly the entire South China Sea under its so-called nine-dash line, despite an international court ruling in 2016 that declared the claim invalid. The collision near Sabina Shoal comes less than two weeks after an air confrontation between Chinese and Philippine military forces at Scarborough Shoal, which Beijing seized from Manila in 2012.
In July, the two countries announced that they had reached a “temporary agreement” regarding Second Thomas Shoal after repeated clashes over resupply missions for a group of Philippine sailors living aboard a warship that ran aground there in 1999. The Philippine Coast Guard dispatched one of its major patrol vessels, BRP Teresa Magbanua, to Sabina in April after Philippine researchers discovered submerged piles of crushed corals in the shallow areas, raising suspicions that China might be planning to construct a structure on the atoll. The Chinese Coast Guard later sent a vessel to Sabina. Sabina is located close to Second Thomas Shoal.