Chinese Coast Guard reported today, Monday, that a Philippine vessel "deliberately collided" with a Chinese ship in a "unprofessional and dangerous" manner, ignoring repeated warnings. A short night video of the incident shared on the Chinese Coast Guard's social media showed that the collision occurred around 3:24 AM on Monday (19:24 GMT Sunday) and described the Chinese ship as belonging to the Coast Guard.
According to a Chinese official: "A China Coast Guard vessel and a Philippine Coast Guard vessel had a collision near Escoda Shoal in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) on Monday."
In one statement, the Chinese maritime security forces said, "The same Philippine vessel entered waters near the Second Thomas Shoal after being prevented from entering the waters of Sabina Shoal."
Chinese Coast Guard spokesperson Jan Yu stated that "two vessels belonging to the Philippine Coast Guard illegally entered the waters near Sabina Shoal without permission in the early hours of Monday." He added, "The Philippines has repeatedly provoked and caused problems, violating the temporary arrangements between China and the Philippines."
The Chinese Coast Guard stated that it took surveillance measures against the Philippine ships, in accordance with the law during the incidents that occurred early Monday, and demanded the Philippines "immediately stop the violations and provocations" or "bear all consequences."
