Three Filipino soldiers were reported injured in the latest China Coast Guard water cannon attack on a Philippine supply vessel near a South China Sea reef, National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said on Sunday.
The United States and multiple other countries denounced China for its “dangerous actions” that could destabilize the region and disregard international law after Chinese Coast Guard’s (CCG) water cannon attack that severely damaged a Philippine vessel and injured its crew members during a routine resupply (RORE) mission to the country’s outpost in Ayungin Shoal.
Other countries that expressed solidarity with the Philippines throughtheir ambassadors include Japan, France, Great Britain, Netherlands, Germany, Australia, among others. They all opposed China’s aggressive and irresponsible actions that jeopardize freedom of navigation.
The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) slams the Chinese over its latest dangerous acts off Ayungin Shoal, whichdamaged a resupply boat enroute to resupply Philippine Marines personnel stationed at BRP Sierra Madre on Saturday morning.
The Japanese Embassy in Manila has also expressed grave concern over what it described as China’s “repeated dangerous actions” in the South China Sea.
Manila said Saturday’s confrontation caused severe damage to the Unaizah May 4 vessel while it was on its way to deliver troops and provisions to a Philippine Navy ship grounded atop the Second Thomas Shoal.
Año said three Navy personnel aboard the vessel were injured in Saturday’s incident.
The extent and nature of their injuries were not disclosed, though themilitary said the personnel were treated aboard a coast guard escortship.
Four crew members were injured by broken glass in an earlier China Coast Guard water cannon attack on the same vessel on March 5.
“This is just an ordinary rotation and resupply or provision operation, but look at how the Chinese are reacting,” Año told reporters, according to an interview transcript shared with Agence France Presse (AFP).
The US, which has a mutual defense pact with Manila, has denounced the attack.
“The (Chinese) actions are destabilizing to the region and show clear disregard for international law,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement, reaffirming Washington’s mutual defense treaty commitments to Manila.
The China Coast Guard has defended its actions, describing them as “lawful regulation, interception and expulsion” of a foreign vessel that “tried to forcefully intrude” into Chinese waters.
Año said the damaged vessel has returned to the western province of Palawan after its crew managed to restart its engine.
“We will not be deterred. We will not be intimidated,” he said, vowing the Philippines would continue to resupply the garrison on Second Thomas Shoal.
The US State Department has also reaffirmed its commitment to the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) between the US and the Philippines.
“The United States reaffirms that Article IV of the 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty extends to armed attacks on Philippine armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft – including those of its Coast Guard – anywhere in the South China Sea,” US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement dated March 23.
The seven-decade old defense pact dictates that the US and the Philippines would support each other if either of them were to be attacked by an external party.
The Philippines’ National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) reported Saturday morning that CCG vessels, along with Chinese maritime militia vessels, “acted recklessly and dangerously” against the country’s resupply boat Unaizah May 4 (UM4) and its Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) escort vessels.
This ended with two CCG ships water cannoning the UM4, causing severe damage to the boat and injuries to the Filipino crew members onboard.
The NTF-WPS said the Chinese vessels even attempted to obstruct the PCG escort vessels from providing immediate relief and assistance to the disabled UM4 and its crew, but the PCG ships were able to break through and provide medical attention to the injured crew.
To complete the RORE mission, BRP Sierra Madre, which serves as the Philippines’ outpost in Ayungin Shoal, deployed rigid-hulled inflatable boats to UM4 to ferry personnel.
According to Miller, China’s actions “are destabilizing to the region and show clear disregard for international law,” adding that the 2016 Arbitral ruling clearly disregarded Beijing’s expansive claims to the waters around Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungin Shoal) and that the submerged reef is clearly within the Philippines exclusive economic zone.
“As provided under the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention, the 2016 arbitral decision is final and legally binding on the PRC (People’s Republic of China) and the Philippines, and the United States calls upon the PRC to abide by the ruling and desist from its dangerous and destabilizing conduct,” the US official said.
The Philippines, along with Southeast Asian neighbors Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam, have overlapping claims in the South China Sea, along with China, which is claiming virtually the entire resource-rich region, including maritime features in the West Philippine Sea that are well within Manila’s EEZ.
“Japan stands in solidarity with the PH as confirmed at the (Japan-PH-US) Vice Foreign Ministers’ meeting held this week,” the embassy said in an X (Twitter) post.
The incident comes ahead of President Marcos’ visit to Washington, where he is set to hold a trilateral leaders’ summit with his US and Japanese counterparts on April 11.
According to the White House, Marcos, US President Joe Biden, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will discuss a broad range of areas, including economic and security cooperation, among others.
“The United States stands with its ally the Philippines and condemns the dangerous actions by the People’s Republic of China against lawful Philippine maritime operations in the South China Sea on March 23,” the US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a press statement.
The Philippine government through National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) lambasted the China Coast Guard on Saturday for damaging a Filipino supply vessel near the Ayungin Shoal with water cannons and injuring those on board.
Miller lamented over the weekend the repeated attacks and reckless blocking maneuvers of China Coast Guard vessels. He acknowledged that these actions resulted in significant damage to the Philippines’ resupply vessel, on top of serious physical injuries to its crew members.
The US State Department said the March 23 incident marks China’s constant pattern of aggression that undermines international law. It cited the July 2016 Arbitration Ruling that invalidates China’s claims to the entire South China Sea.
“The PRC has no lawful maritime claims to the waters around Second Thomas Shoal and Second Thomas Shoal is a low tide feature clearly within the Philippines exclusive economic zone,” Miller said in his statement. With AFP