US demands Beijing stop ‘provocative and unsafe’ acts in South China Sea

‘We call upon Beijing to desist from its provocative and unsafe conduct,’ said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller

A Chinese coastguard ship cut off a Philippine patrol vessel near the Spratly Islands last Sunday, causing a near-collision

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The Philippine coast guard vessel BRP Malapascua, front, manoeuvres as a Chinese coast guard ship cuts its path at Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands in the disputed South China Sea. Photo: AFP

Published: 3:58am, 30 Apr 2023Updated: 7:50pm, 30 Apr 2023

The US called on China on Saturday to stop its “provocative and unsafe conduct” in the disputed South China Sea, after a Chinese coastguard ship recently cut off a Philippine patrol vessel there, causing a near-collision last Sunday.

US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, in a statement two days before US President Joe Biden is to host Philippine counterpart Ferdinand Marcos, Jnr at the White House in Washington, called images of the incident a reminder of China’s “harassment and intimidation” of Philippine vessels in the contested waterway.

“We call upon Beijing to desist from its provocative and unsafe conduct,” Miller said, adding that any attack on Philippine armed forces would trigger a US response.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, Jnr, centre, is joined by chief of staff of the Armed Forces of Philippines Andres Centino, left, and US Army Lieutenant Colonel Timothy Lynch in Zambales province, north of Manila, Philippines on Wednesday. Photo: EPA-EFE

The near-miss on Sunday off the Spratly Islands, known as the Nansha Islands in China, was the latest in a long string of incidents between China and the Philippines in the contested waterway.

Beijing claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, ignoring an international ruling that the assertion has no legal basis.

Agence France-Presse was one of several media outlets that witnessed the incident after journalists were invited to join two Philippine coastguard boats on a six-day patrol of the waters, visiting a dozen islands and reefs.

The Philippine vessels approached Second Thomas Shoal, known in China as Ren’ai Jiao, in the Spratly archipelago.

As one boat, the BRP Malapascua, which was carrying Filipino journalists, neared the shoal, a Chinese coastguard vessel more than twice its size sailed into its path.