Philippines Builds Anti-Ship Missile Base Overlooking South China Sea, Philippine And Chinese Vessels Collide

The Philippines and China have accused one another of carrying out dangerous maneuvers in the South China Sea, including the Second Thomas Shoal.

SOUTH CHINA SEA - The Philippines has built its first BrahMos anti-ship missile base facing the South China Sea amidst heightened regional tensions, including an incident reported by the Chinese Coast Guard on June 17th, where it said it took "regulatory measures" after it claimed a Philippine vessel "dangerously approached" a Chinese vessel which resulted in a collision.

Chinese Coast Guard vessel

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Both the Philippines and China have accused one another of carrying out dangerous maneuvers in the South China Sea, including the Second Thomas Shoal, also called the Ayungin Shoal, which is within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone and is claimed by both countries.

The Chinese military released a statement on June 17th that said, "The China Coast Guard (CCG) has taken regulatory measures to respond to an illegal intrusion by a Philippine vessel into waters near Ren'ai Jiao on Monday morning, the CCG said in a statement.

At 5:59 a.m., a Philippine supply vessel, in disregard of repeated stern warnings from the Chinese side, deliberately and dangerously approached Chinese vessels navigating normally in adjacent waters of Ren'ai Jiao. This violated the International Regulations for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea, the statement said.

The act led to a slight collision, for which the responsibility lies entirely with the Philippine side, the statement added."

Another statement issued by the Chinese military said, “The China Coast Guard (CCG) said on Monday that it has taken action in accordance with the law against a Philippine supply ship that illegally entered the waters adjacent to Ren'ai Jiao of China's Nansha Islands.

The Philippines should take full responsibility for the incident, as the Philippine vessel deliberately and dangerously approached a Chinese ship in an unprofessional manner, despite repeated warnings, said the CCG in a statement.”

This incident is not the first collision to have occurred in the disputed region as the Philippines carries out resupply missions to its troops stationed at the BRP Sierra Madre, an old World War II vessel that was deliberately grounded on the Ayungin Shoal by the Philippine government in 1999 to serve as an outpost for the Philippine Marine Corps To affirm its Exclusive Economic Zone in the region.

The grounded BRP Sierra Madre serves as a base for the Philippine military

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