The tensions between the Philippines and China are related to territorial disputes in the strategically important South China Sea.
of the Philippines The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Monday that it had summoned the Chinese ambassador for an interview regarding the two ship collisions that occurred in the South China Sea on Sunday.
China, on the other hand, says that it has submitted a written complaint to the Philippines on the same subject.
According to the Philippines, the situations could have had catastrophic consequences. The news agencies Reuters and AFP report on the matter.
of the Philippines and Chinese ships collided twice Sunday morning near the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.
The collisions occurred when the Philippine ships were taking supplies to the country’s armed forces base, which is located in the Ayung Shoal, which is part of the Spratly Islands. The base is the former warship BRP Sierra Madre.
The Ayung Basin belongs to the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines. China’s nearest large land area, Hainan Island, is more than a thousand kilometers away.
However, China claims that almost the entire strategically important South China Sea is the territory of the Chinese state. According to the decision of the International Court of Arbitration, the claims have no legal basis.
of the Philippines a spokesman for the National Security Council Jonathan Malaya said Monday at a press conference that China’s attempt to intercept replenishment shipments caused damage to one Philippine ship.
The damage has not yet been accurately assessed, but a spokesperson for the coast guard Jay Tarriela said they were “deep” and “more like scratches”.
No one was injured in the collision.
China’s the coast guard said there had been a “minor collision” between one of its vessels and a Philippine vessel, when the coast guard vessel had “lawfully” prevented the Filipino vessel from taking “illegal construction materials” to the BRP Sierra Madre.
In the second collision, according to the Philippines, a Chinese naval vessel “rammed” a coast guard ship that was escorting a replenishment transport.
According to China, the Philippine vessel, on the other hand, tried to cause problems by deliberately backing into a “Chinese fishing vessel”.
China’s has been accused of using fishing squadrons to harass other vessels in the South China Sea.
Considered a paramilitary force, squadrons have sometimes been referred to as “little blue men”. The term comes from the nickname “little green men” of the Russian troops who occupied Crimea in 2014.
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