Advertisement
South China Sea
AsiaSoutheast Asia

South China Sea: Manila asks Beijing for explanation over latest maritime feud

  • Philippines asked for ‘clarification’ over an incident involving a Chinese coastguard forcibly seizing Chinese rocket debris in possession of Filipino navy staff
  • China’s Foreign Ministry in Beijing has denied the debris was seized forcibly

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
4
Philippine coast guard personnel monitor a Chinese coast guard ship in Scarborough Shoal in the South China sea. Photo: Philippine Coast Guard/Handout/AFP/ File
Associated Press
The Philippines has sought an explanation from China after a Filipino military commander reported that the Chinese coastguard forcibly seized Chinese rocket debris in the possession of Filipino navy personnel in the disputed South China Sea, officials said Thursday.
Advertisement
Sunday’s incident off Philippine-occupied Thitu island is the latest flare-up in the long-seething territorial disputes involving mainland China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. China has denied its coastguard forcibly seized the debris from the Filipino sailors.

Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson in Manila, Maria Theresa Daza, said without elaborating that a diplomatic note was relayed to China for “clarification from the Chinese side over the incident.”

Vice Admiral Alberto Carlos, who heads the military’s Western Command, said the Filipino sailors, using a long-range camera, spotted the debris drifting in strong waves near a sandbar about 800 yards (540 meters) offshore. They set out on a boat and retrieved the floating object and started to tow it back to Thitu Island.

As they were travelling back to the island, “they noticed that a China coastguard vessel with bow number 5203 was approaching their location and subsequently blocked their pre-plotted course twice,” Carlos said in a statement.

Advertisement

The Chinese coastguard vessel then deployed an inflatable boat with personnel who “forcefully retrieved said floating object by cutting the towing line” attached to the Filipino sailors’ rubber boat. The sailors decided to return to their island, Carlos said, without detailing what happened.

Advertisement