China’s Coast Guard says it has rescued Philippine “personnel” who fell overboard after a Philippine vessel collided with one of its ships near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea.
The Philippines on Sunday, however, called China’s claims “completely unfounded.” China’s Coast Guard said on Sunday that the Philippine ship “ignored repeated serious warnings, deliberately approached and rammed” a Chinese law enforcement boat.
It also said the collision occurred near the disputed Sabina Shoal, 140 kilometres (87 miles) west of the Philippine island of Palawan and about 1,200 kilometres (746 miles) from Hainan Island, the nearest Chinese landmass.
Chinese coast guard spokesman Gan Yu said the collision occurred when the Philippine vessel refused to comply with “control measures” after attempting to deliver cargo to another vessel “illegally stationed” off Xianbing Reef near the Nansha Islands – the Chinese names for the Sabine Shoal and the Spratly Islands, which are also claimed by Manila.
Manila said the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources vessel was delivering food, fuel and medicine to Filipino fishermen when Chinese ships made “aggressive and dangerous manoeuvres” to interfere with the mission. The Philippine side said the ships went on a ramming spree and used water cannons against the Philippine vessel, resulting in the crew having to abort the mission.
China and ASEAN members – the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam – are engaged in a territorial dispute over the Spratly archipelago in the South China Sea. The US is allied with some regional powers and supports their position in disputes with China. Meanwhile, the Philippines has been strengthening relations with the US and partners in Asia.
Earlier in August, an incident involving Philippine and Chinese ships took place off Sabina Shoal.
