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The Philippines has said it is continuing its patrol of a bitterly contested area in the South China Sea, defying China as it seeks to reassure local fishermen.
Manila refuted the Chinese Coast Guard's claim it had expelled a Philippine fisheries bureau vessel from the Second Thomas Shoal, which China effectively occupied after a 2012 standoff with its neighbor.
The shoal, known in the Philippines as Bajo De Masinloc and in China as Huangyan Dao, is less than 140 miles from the Philippine province of Luzon and nearly 600 miles from Hainan, the nearest Chinese province. It sits well within the Southeast Asian country's internationally recognized exclusive economic zone.
The Chinese Coast Guard said Thursday it had driven away a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) that was "illegally trespassing in waters adjacent to Huangyan Dao."
The U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty ally's coast guard was quick to respond to the claim.
"This statement is inaccurate," the agency's spokesperson Jay Tarriela wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
He said the BRP Datu Sanday continues its patrol in contested waters on its mission of "actively ensuring the security of Filipino fishermen in that area." He said this would be soon confirmed by the journalists who are currently embedded on the ship.
The neighbors' latest tit-for-tat comes after the BFAR accused Chinese crews of damaging the shoal through cyanide fishing, citing testimonies by Philippine fishermen. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has threatened legal action if this is borne out by an investigation.
The BFAR and Chinese foreign ministry didn't immediately respond to Newsweek's written requests for comment.
The Fisheries Bureau and Coast Guard patrols are consistent with President Marcos Jr.'s orders to maintain a Philippine presence in the disputed waters continually.
The country is seething after videos emerged last month of China once again chasing off its fishermen from the shoal, a traditional fishing ground for them as well as anglers from China and Vietnam.
China asserts claims over most of the South China Sea, including parts that lie within the EEZs of the Philippines and other neighbors. An EEZ is a 200-nautical-mile zone within which maritime law grants claimant states sole access to natural resources.
The Philippines brought the dispute before an international arbitral court shortly after losing control over the Second Thomas Shoal. Beijing chose not to take part in the proceedings and maintains that the court's 2016 decision, which largely favored the Philippines, is illegal.
Last week, the Philippine Senate approved an amendment that would officially claim any man-made features falling within the nation's EEZ, including Spratly Island reefs that China has built up and militarized.
About the writer
Micah McCartney is a reporter for Newsweek based in Taipei, Taiwan. He covers U.S.-China relations, East Asian and Southeast Asian ... Read more