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MANILA – The Philippines said on Sunday that two of its vessels collided with Chinese ships in the disputed South China Sea, reported German Press Agency (dpa).
The Philippine vessels were bringing supplies to troops stationed at a marooned and dilapidated World War II-era warship near the Second Thomas Shoal, an atoll that is part of the Spratly Islands and which is a flashpoint between the countries.
A Philippine government task force alleged that a Chinese coastguard ship performed dangerous manoeuvrers that caused it to collide with a Philippine military-contracted supply boat early on Sunday.
The task force said the the Chinese ship had taken a "provocative, irresponsible, and illegal action."
On the same mission, a Chinese maritime militia boat bumped into a Philippine coastguard ship, the task force said.
Second Thomas Shoal lies about 200 kilometres west of the Philippine province of Palawan and is within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
In 1999, the Philippines intentionally grounded BRP Sierra Madre, an old rusting navy ship, in the Second Thomas Shoal. It now serves as a military station in the area to reinforce the Philippines' territorial claim.
China has been demanding the Philippines remove the ship.
Chinese ships regularly shadow and try to block Philippine vessels from reaching the shoal. In August, a Chinese coastguard ship fired water cannon at Philippine vessels bringing food, water and other supplies to Filipino soldiers stationed at the shoal.
China, which claims almost the entire South China Sea, has taken increasingly aggressive actions in the area in recent years. It has ignored a 2016 ruling by an international arbitration court that it has no legal or historical basis for its expansive claims. – Bernama-dpa, October 22, 2023
