West Philippine Sea: China, PH blame trade in latest Sabina clash

China and the Philippines accused each other on Saturday of deliberately ramming their coast guard vessels near a flashpoint in the South China Sea, the latest in a series of similar incidents in recent weeks.

Beijing claims almost all of the economically vital body of water, despite competing claims from other countries and an international court ruling that its claim has no legal basis.

A spokesman for the Chinese coast guard said Saturday’s incident occurred off the disputed Sabina Shoal, which has emerged as a new flash point in the long-running maritime standoff between the two countries.

Sabina Shoal is located 140 kilometers (86 miles) west of the Philippine island of Palawan and about 1,200 kilometers from Hainan Island, the nearest Chinese landmass.

Shortly after noon (0400 GMT), a Philippine vessel “deliberately collided with” a Chinese vessel near the shoal, known in Chinese as the Xianbin, Chinese Coast Guard spokesman Liu Dejun said, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

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“China exercises indisputable sovereignty” in the area, Liu said, condemning the Philippine ship’s “unprofessional and dangerous” behavior.

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However, Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela said it was China Coast Guard Vessel 5205 that “directly and intentionally hit” the Philippine vessel, BRP Teresa Magbanua.

The ship has been anchored in Sabina Shoal since April to assert Manila’s claim to the area.

Tarriela said the BRP Teresa Magbanua was hit three times – hitting the port, starboard and port bows.

No crew members were injured during the incident, but the ship’s bridge wing and freeboard were damaged. A hole was also found.

“It is important for us to bear in mind that this attack occurred despite … our unprovoked action and presence in Escoda Shoal,” Tarriela told reporters, using the Filipino name for Sabina Shoal.

The United States, a strong ally of Manila that had raised the South China Sea in high-level bilateral talks this week in Beijing, criticized China for “dangerous and escalating” actions near the Sabina Shoal.

Washington called on China to “harmonize its claims and actions with international law and desist from dangerous and destabilizing behavior,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.

– “Serious concern” –

The collision was the fifth incident of Chinese maritime harassment this month, Tarriela said.

National Maritime Council spokesman Alexander Lopez said a report on the latest collision will be sent to the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs for review and appropriate action.

“We take this seriously as a matter of concern,” Lopez said in a news conference.

“We are there on a legal basis, because this is ours, we don’t have to ask for permission on our own territory. Let’s be very clear,” he said.

Philippine and Chinese ships have collided near Sabina Shoal at least twice this month, and analysts say Beijing is trying to push deeper into Manila’s exclusive economic zone and normalize Chinese control of the area.

The discovery this year of piles of crushed coral at the shoal fueled suspicion in Manila that Beijing was planning to build another permanent base there, which would be its closest outpost to the Philippine archipelago.

Recent clashes between Philippine and Chinese ships have also occurred around Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands.

A Filipino sailor lost a thumb in a clash there in June when Chinese coastguards wielding knives, sticks and an ax foiled an attempt by the Philippine Navy to resupply a small garrison.

Sabina Shoal is also the rendezvous point for Philippine resupply missions to the garrison on Second Thomas Shoal.

Repeated clashes prompted Manila to declare Beijing the “biggest disturber” of peace in Southeast Asia at a defense conference this month.

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