China Coast Guard Rams Philippine Cutters Near Disputed South China Sea Shoals 

August 19, 2024 7:14 AM
Chinese video of a China Coast Guard Cutter attempting to block the passage of a Philippine Coast Guard vessel. Image via X

Philippine and Chinese Coast Guard vessels collided in the South China Sea near two disputed shoals on Monday morning in the latest encounter at sea between Manila and Beijing.

According to Manila, two Philippine Coast Guard patrol boats, BRP Bagacay (MRRV-4410) and BRP Cape Engaño (MRRV-4411), were rammed by China Coast Guard vessels CCGV-3104 and CCGV-21551 around 20 nautical miles southeast of Escoda Shoal. Imagery released by the Philippine Coast Guard showed three-foot-wide hole punctured into Bagacay. The agency also reported “minor structural damage” to Cape Engaño, which reportedly received rammings on both starboard and port that resulted in denting and a 1.5-meter-wide hull hole.

Jonathan Malaya, Assistant Director General of the National Security Council, stated that two patrol vessels were carrying out a resupply mission for the Philippine outposts at Nanshan and Flat Islands and that they would continue their mission after the incident. He further attributed the spat to “unlawful and aggressive maneuvers from Chinese Coast Guard vessels.”

While the Philippines stated its Coast Guard vessels were undertaking resupply missions to features other than Second Thomas and Escoda Shoals, China declared that their “control measures” were justified as the vessels were “illegally intruding” into areas around the features. The China Coast Guard also claimed that these vessels were “violating the temporary arrangement between China and the Philippines regarding the supply of necessities to the ship illegally ‘grounded’ on China’s Ren’ai Reef,” referring to a yet-to-be-disclosed agreement on the replenishment and personnel rotation of BRP Sierra Madre (LT-57) at Second Thomas Shoal after June 17th’s clash.

The incident is the latest following the provisional agreement at Second Thomas Shoal, which yielded a short reprieve in encounters between the Philippines and China. Two weeks ago, Chinese fighter jets, which the Armed Forces of the Philippines claims were flown from Beijing’s artificial islands, deployed flares in front of a Philippine Air Force aircraft conducting a patrol mission over Scarborough Shoal.

These encounters have continued amid increased maritime cooperative activities – also known as joint patrols – between the Philippines and partners such as Japan, Australia, Canada and the U.S. in the South China Sea. Three Chinese warships were seen shadowing a patrol held earlier this month.

Ray Powell, director of the SeaLight Project at Stanford University’s Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation, told USNI News that this incident “opened up a new front” in the territorial disputes between the Philippines and China.

“In violently impeding Philippine Coast Guard operations on the high seas near Sabina Shoal, China has opened up a new front in its gray-zone maritime campaign in the West Philippine Sea, moving the front lines to within 75 nautical miles of the Philippine mainland,” said Powell.

Powell also voiced concern about recent rhetoric raised by Chinese state media and government spokespeople around Escoda Shoal, a feature that has been the site of a four-month-long standoff between Philippine and Chinese Coast Guards. Since April, Philippine Coast Guard flagship BRP Teresa Magbanua (MRRV-9701) has faced off against numerous Chinese patrol vessels and warships. The Philippines has previously cited concerns about a potential reclamation attempt, similar to those at Subi and Mischief Reefs, for the Coast Guard deployment.

According to Powell, China has “been transmitting the pretext that the Philippine Coast Guard ship anchored at Sabina Shoal was equivalent to the rusting, grounded BRP Sierra Madre at Second Thomas Shoal and thus must be removed.”

Aaron-Matthew Lariosa

Aaron-Matthew Lariosa

Aaron-Matthew Lariosa is a freelance defense journalist based in Washington, D.C.

Get USNI News updates delivered to your inbox