The Philippine government announced on Saturday (January 25) that the country has suspended its scientific research activities in the South China Sea following what it described as “harassment” and attacks by the Chinese Coast Guard and Navy on two Philippine fishing vessels.
Tensions between the Philippines and China in the disputed waters of the South China Sea have been escalating. The trade volume in the South China Sea exceeds $3 trillion annually, with China claiming almost all sovereignty over this globally critical waterway, overlapping with the sovereignty claims of the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
According to a statement from the Philippine Coast Guard on Saturday, two Philippine fishing vessels were conducting sand sampling near Thitu Island, which is occupied by the Philippines, when they encountered what they described as “aggressive maneuvers” by three Chinese Coast Guard ships.
In a separate statement, the Chinese Coast Guard asserted “indisputable sovereignty” over islands in the South China Sea, including Sandy Cay (referred to as Feixin Jiao by China), and stated that the Chinese Coast Guard lawfully intercepted the two Philippine vessels and escorted them away.
Both the Philippine Embassy in Beijing and the Chinese Embassy in Manila have yet to comment or respond to requests for statements.
The Philippine Coast Guard reported that two rigid-hulled inflatable boats dispatched by the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources to conduct scientific research near Sandy Cay faced “harassment” from four Chinese Coast Guard ships.
As the Philippine Defense Forces provided support for the scientific mission, a Chinese naval helicopter was observed flying at an “unsafe altitude” above the water.
The Philippine Coast Guard stated, “Due to the continuous harassment and unsafe maneuvers by the Chinese Navy, the investigation operation was forced to be temporarily suspended.”
On July 12, 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague issued a ruling on China’s sovereignty claims in the South China Sea, determining that China’s claims lacked a basis in international law, a ruling that China has refused to acknowledge.
(This article is based on reporting from Reuters)