The Philippines has accused Chinese vessels of carrying out “dangerous maneuvers” in a disputed area of the South China Sea in the latest maritime flare-up between the two neighbors, APA reports citing CNN.
The Philippine coast guard said in a statement Friday it had been carrying out a routine rotation and resupply mission near Ayungin Shoal, known in China as Ren’ai Reef, when its vessels were approached by eight Chinese boats.
It claimed the Chinese boats “jeopardized” the safety of the crew members aboard the Philippine vessels, but did not detail how. It claimed the incident had involved four Chinese coast guard vessels and four Chinese “maritime militia” boats.
The incident comes just weeks after the Philippines accused Chinese coast guard ships of firing water cannons at its vessels as they tried to resupply troops stationed on the same shoal in the Spratly Islands chain, known in China as the Nansha Islands.
Western marine security experts believe Beijing controls a maritime militia hundreds of vessels strong that acts as an unofficial – and officially deniable – force to push its territorial claims both in the South China Sea and beyond.
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