Philippines accuse China of firing water cannons at their boats

The Philippines has vehemently condemned the actions of three China Coast Guard ships that blockaded and used water cannons on two Manila supply boats en route to a Philippine-occupied atoll in the South China Sea, the top Philippine diplomat said. Thursday (18th).

Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin said no one was injured during the Nov. 16 incident at Second Thomas Shoal atoll, but Philippine boats carrying food for the military based there had to abort their mission. .

“The acts of the Chinese Coast Guard are illegal,” Locsin said in a statement, reminding China that a public vessel is covered by the US-Philippines mutual defense pact.

Locsin said he conveyed “in the strongest terms” to the Chinese ambassador in Manila “our indignation, condemnation and protest at the incident.”

Locsin warned that “Beijing’s failure to exercise self-control threatens the special relationship” between the two countries.

“China does not have the right to exercise its laws in and around these areas. They must be careful and back off,” Locsin said.

The Philippine government considers the oceanic island of Second Thomas Shoal – which lies 105 nautical miles (195 kilometers) southwest of the Philippine region of Palauã – as being within its 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone. The atoll has been occupied since 1999, after Philippine authorities intentionally ground a navy ship on the reef.

China, which claims virtually the entire South China Sea, claims the reef is part of its territory, but a 2016 ruling by the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague was favorable to the Philippines.

The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to requests for press comments.

China claims sovereignty over vast swaths of the South China Sea, but Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam have also filed competing claims for some or all of the islands.

* (Translated material. Read the original in English here).