Collisions have occurred in the South China Sea (SCS) due to risky manoeuvres by Chinese maritime police vessels. These incidents involved ships belonging to the military and coast guard of the Philippines. This information is provided in a news release issued by the National Task Force of the government of the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea, which is the Filipino name for the SCS.
According to their information, the event occurred on Sunday morning during the rotation of personnel stationed on the Sierra Madre ship rotating through their duties. A collision occurred between the Chinese coast guard ship and a supply ship belonging to the Philippine Navy as a direct result of “dangerous manoeuvres” carried out by the Chinese ship. In a separate incident, a Chinese Coast Guard and a Philippine vessel were involved in a collision close to Ayungin Shoal.
China Coast Guard vessel 5203 (CCGV 5203) engaged in hazardous blocking manoeuvres this morning at approximately 06:04H, during a routine Rotation and Resupply (RORE) mission to BRP SIERRA MADRE (LS57). As a result, the vessel collided with the Armed Forces of the Philippines-contracted indigenous resupply vessel Unaiza May 2 (UM2) at a location approximately 13.5 nautical miles (NM) east northeast of LS57, according to a statement.
It continued, “CCGV 5203’s provocative, negligent, and unlawful conduct endangered the safety of the UM2 crew.”
According to the statement, the National Task Force in the West Philippine Sea strongly condemns the recent dangerous, irresponsible, and unlawful activities of the Chinese maritime police, which violate the sovereign rights and jurisdiction of the Philippines. The statement also added that the National Task Force in the West Philippine Sea issued the statement.
In the contested waters of the South China Sea, encounters involving vessels from the Philippines and China take place regularly. In August, for instance, a Chinese coast guard ship deployed water cannons while manoeuvring dangerously close to ships belonging to the Philippines. The incident occurred while the Sierra Madre ship brought supplies to Filipino military forces stationed on Ayungin Shoal, which Beijing claims as its territory.
In 1999, Philippine authorities placed the American landing ship Sierra Madre, which had served during World War II, among the disputed reefs of the South China Sea to keep an eye on China’s activities in the region. Consistently, there is a detachment of a few armed forces members on board the ship. The Chinese government has issued multiple demands for the ship’s disposal and has even threatened to haul it away themselves.
