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Manila and Beijing have had a series of escalating confrontations in disputed waters of the South China Sea. China claims almost all the strategic waterway, through which US$3 trillion of commerce moves annually, overlapping with claims by the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam.
On Friday, two Philippine Bureau of Fisheries vessels, on their way to collect sand samples from Sandy Cay near the Philippine-occupied Thitu island, encountered “aggressive manoeuvres” from three Chinese coastguard vessels, the Philippine coastguard said in a statement.
China deployed four small boats to “harass” two rigid hull inflatable boats deployed by the fisheries bureau to transport personnel to the Sandy Cay, the Philippine coastguard, which supported the scientific mission, said.
A Chinese navy helicopter also hovered at an “unsafe altitude” over those craft, it said.
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History, money and military: why the South China Sea is so important to Beijing
History, money and military: why the South China Sea is so important to Beijing
Survey operations were suspended “as a result of this continuous harassment and the disregard for safety exhibited by the Chinese maritime forces”, the Philippine coastguard said.