New confrontation at Scarborough Shoal

YET again, the China Coast Guard has used water cannon on Philippine vessels, which Manila immediately protested, the 20th such this year.

Over the past two years, the Philippines has made 153 complaints since President Marcos Jr. came to power in mid 2022 regarding the harassment, ramming, swarming, shadowing and blocking, dangerous maneuvers, use of water cannons, and other aggressive actions of the China Coast Guard and Chinese maritime militia.

Scarborough Shoal, well within the Philippines 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone, was seized by China from the Philippines in 2012 after a months-long standoff – and has become a potential flashpoint during missions to resupply Filipino fishermen.

The Philippine government, through the Department of Foreign Affairs, is on track in protesting the water cannon incident, far more powerful than anything previously used as it tore or bent metal sections of equipment on the Philippine vessels.

The China Coast Guard also reinstalled a 380-meter barrier across the entrance to the shoal, a traditional Filipino fishing ground, blocking access to the waters inside, the statement said.

China’s Coast Guard said it had “expelled” two Philippine ships from its waters near Huangyan Island, the Chinese name for the shoal.

Manila summoned Zhou Zhiyong, the number two official at the Chinese Embassy, over the April 30 incident. The Chinese Embassy has not responded to requests for comment.

“China’s aggressive actions, particularly its water cannon use, caused damage” to the Philippines’ vessels, the DFA said, demanding the Chinese boats immediately leave the shoal and its vicinity.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, brushing off rival claims from other countries, including the Philippines, and an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis.

The triangular chain of reefs and rocks that make up Scarborough Shoal lies 240 kilometers west of the Philippines’ main island of Luzon and nearly 900 kilometers from Hainan, the nearest major Chinese land mass.

Since seizing the shoal, Beijing has deployed its coast guard and other vessels but they continue to harass Philippine ships and prevent Filipino fishermen from accessing the rich area.

The latest incident came as the Philippines and the United States held a major annual military exercise that has fired up Beijing.

Manila and Washington have a mutual defense treaty and recent confrontations between Philippine and Chinese vessels have fueled speculation of what would trigger it.

President Marcos said last month that US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had given assurances that the treaty would be invoked if another “foreign power” killed a Filipino soldier.

President Marcos has stood up to China’s growing assertiveness in the waterway since taking office in 2022, insisting the Philippines “will not yield” as it defends its sovereign territory.

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