Chinese Coast Guard Ships Attempt to Block Philippine Vessels Carrying Scientists in South China Sea

Manila: Chinese coast guard ships backed by a military helicopter attempted unsuccessfully to block two Philippine government vessels carrying scientists from reaching two sandbars in disputed South China Sea, Philippine officials said on Friday. Chinese coast guard personnel blew horn on one of ir ships for half an hour and repeatedly transmitted rio warnings during confrontation Thursday, but Filipino scientists managed to complete ir four-hour marine and biodiversity research at barren sandbars called Sandy Cay, officials said.

Chinese coast guard gave a different account of faceoff. A spokesperson, Gan Yu, said in a statement that its law enforcement officers “boarded” sandbars, which Beijing calls Tiexian Reef, and dealt with what it called “illegal activities” by 34 Philippine personnel who “ignored China's warnings and dissuasion.” “That's anor lie coming from Chinese coast guard,” Philippine coast guard Commodore Jay Tarriela said at a news conference on Friday. “For four hours, our marine scientists were able to continue ir research.” Journalists who were invited to join research mission witnessed incident, Tarriela said.

It was latest flareup in increasingly tense territorial disputes that are seen as a potential Asian flashpoint that might bring China and United States into a conflict if y degenerate into a major armed confrontation.

China, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei have overlapping territorial claims that have erupted from time to time into brief confrontations in South China Sea.

Hostilities between China and Philippines, however, have worsened since last year, resulting in minor collisions at sea and injuries to a few Filipino crewmen, sparking a war of words.

Washington has no territorial claims in strategic waterway but has questioned China's claim to virtually entire seaway. United States has repeatedly warned that it's obligated to defend Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack.

During Chinese coast guard's maneuvers, one of its ships crossed bow of Philippine fisheries vessel BRP Datu Sanday at a distance of 100 meters (328 feet), Tarriela said. At least 13 suspected Chinese militia vessels tried to help form a blocke, he said.

Two of three small sandbars where Filipino scientists carried out a survey are located between Philippine-occupied Thitu island and Subi, a disputed reef that China transformed into an island base with a military-gre runway, seaports and a number of buildings with communications facilities.

In 2017, Chinese officials accused Philippine military of attempting to build a structure on one of sandbars, and deployed Chinese coast guard and suspected militia ships to keep watch on Sandy Cay.