The confrontation between the two countries could lead to a new geopolitical conflict. What will happen with the intervention of the United States, which signed a mutual defense treaty with Manila?
China and Philippines They accused each other This Saturday of having deliberately caused collisions between ships of its coast guard vessels near a disputed reef in the South China Sea, following a series of incidents in that area.
For historical reasons, China claims virtually all of the islets in the waters of the South China Sea, which has generated friction with neighbours such as the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia.
China and the Philippines raise tensions over a conflict at sea
Since President Ferdinand Marcos came to power in 2022, The Philippines has reaffirmed its claims to sovereignty more decisively on some reefs disputed with China. And in recent days tensions between the two countries have been escalating.
“At 12:06 p.m. (04:06 GMT), the Philippine ship ‘No. 9701’ deliberately collided with the Chinese vessel ‘5205’,” said a spokesman for the Chinese coast guard, Liu Dejun, quoted by public broadcaster CCTV.
But according to Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Jay Tarriela, it was the Chinese coast guard ship that “directly and intentionally rammed” the Philippine vessel BRP Teresa Magbanua.
The ship has been anchored in the area since April in order to assert Manila’s claim to the area. Tarriela said the Philippine vessel was rammed three times and no crew members were injured. He also noted that this collision is the fifth incident involving Chinese ships this month.
The collision occurred in waters near Xianbin Reef, known in the Philippines as “Sabina”. Located 140 km off the Philippine coast and 1,200 km from the Chinese island of Hainan, the reef has been the scene of several incidents in recent days.
On Sunday, Manila accused Chinese ships of hitting a Philippine fishing boat and using water cannons against it near the reef. Liu Dejun, meanwhile, insisted that “China exercises uncontested sovereignty” in the area.
The confrontation between China and Philippines It fuels fears that a conflict could erupt that could lead to intervention by Washington, which has signed a mutual defence treaty with Manila.
Source: Ambito
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
