On Thursday, July 23, tensions escalated once again in the Scarborough Shoal region of the South China Sea between China and the Philippines. Philippine officials reported that a Chinese Coast Guard ship fired water cannons at a Philippine fishing vessel engaged in fuel subsidy and food distribution operations.
Coinciding with the incident, the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting was held in Manila, where China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi was also in attendance.
According to records provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, at 5:54 am on Thursday, Chinese Coast Guard ship with number 3302 approached the Philippine vessel “BRP Datu Dumangsil” of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), coming within about 50 meters of the Filipino vessel’s bow.
At 6:29 am, the Chinese vessel fired water cannons at the Philippine ship for over two minutes, indirectly hitting the Philippine vessel during the dangerous maneuver.
During the incident, the Philippine vessel was distributing fuel subsidies and food packages to local fishermen to help them cope with rising fuel prices.
Jay Tarriela, spokesperson for the Philippine Coast Guard, stated that these actions violated the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs) and put Filipino personnel at risk while they were carrying out purely humanitarian tasks.
The Philippine side mentioned that no injuries were reported, and the vessels continued their mission, successfully completing the fuel subsidy and food distribution work on the same morning.
China’s Coast Guard, in a statement, claimed that two Philippine ships disregarded warnings and “trespassed” in the waters near Scarborough Shoal.
The Chinese authorities stated that the Coast Guard took necessary measures like tracking, monitoring, and interception to drive away the vessels and described their actions as “standard, professional, and lawful,” while urging the Philippines to immediately cease provocative actions.
This incident marked the second clash in the South China Sea between China and the Philippines this week. Previously, the two countries’ vessels had clashed in the area of Second Thomas Shoal, followed by mutual protests from both sides.
During a sideline meeting at the ASEAN conference on Wednesday, the Chinese and Filipino Foreign Ministers clashed over the previous incident at Second Thomas Shoal. Philippine Foreign Minister Teresita Lazaro reiterated strong criticism of the “unacceptable actions” by the Chinese Coast Guard against Filipino personnel. The Philippines also condemned previously released AI videos by Chinese state media depicting Filipinos as monkeys, deeming them highly offensive.
Wang Yi mentioned that if the Philippines attempted to provoke China with support from external forces, they would bear the consequences of their actions.
Scarborough Shoal is located approximately 357 kilometers off Palauig, Zambales province in the Philippines, within the country’s exclusive economic zone. Since the 2012 standoff between Chinese and Philippine vessels, the area has remained under effective control of the Chinese authorities.
The 2016 arbitration ruling in the South China Sea confirmed traditional fishing rights for Filipino fishermen in the Scarborough Shoal area, while rejecting Beijing’s expansive maritime claims based on the “nine-dash line” that covers a significant portion of the South China Sea. Beijing has consistently refused to accept the ruling.
As of Thursday morning, three Philippine Coast Guard vessels, four Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources vessels, and a civilian vessel remained in the Scarborough Shoal region, while China had nine Coast Guard vessels and a maritime militia ship active in the area.