ECONOMY

South China Sea: Caught on camera: Chinese coastguard crashes into Philippine ship before blasting crew with water cannons


Tensions escalated between China and Philippines as countries sparred again in the South China sea after a Chinese vessel launched a barrage of water cannon shots at two Philippines ‘research’ vessels.

According to a statement by The Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, this was an act of aggression by the Chinese on its ‘research’ vessel Datu Sanday and another supporting ship.

The official statement by the Filipinos said that the vessels were roaming near the contentious Spratly islands, trying to collect sand samples from a group on sandbanks on Wednesday, when the incident happened.

The Philippines Fisheries bureau said that the port bow and smoke stack of the vessel were damaged by the cannon attacks, which risked the lives of civilians on the ship. The bureau also claimed that it was the first of its kind attack on Filipino vessels, which happened near the Sandy Cay Reef.

However, the Chinese claimed in their statement that the Philippines vessel approached their ship dangerously which caused the collision. The Chinese Foreign ministry in a statement said that they aren’t aware of such an incident, but claimed that the Chinese coastguard follows the letter of law in international waters.


China and the Philippines have long had a dispute over the Spratly Islands in South China sea, including Sandy Cay islands.

FAQs

Q1. Why did China and Philippines fight?
Because both say the South China Sea islands belong to them.

Q2. What happened to the Filipino ships?
One ship got damaged after being hit by water cannons.



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