Philippines suspends South China Sea survey after China’s ‘harassment’

On Saturday, the Philippines announced it has halted a scientific survey in the South China Sea due to “harassment” and aggressive actions faced by two of its fisheries vessels from China’s coast guard and navy.

Manila and Beijing have experienced a sequence of increasing conflicts in the contested waters of the South China Sea. China asserts sovereignty over nearly all of the key waterway, through which $3 trillion in trade transits each year, conflicting with sovereignty assertions from the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam. On Friday, two Philippine fishing boats, en route to gather sand samples from Sandy Cay close to the Philippine-held Thitu island, faced “hostile maneuvers” from three vessels of the China Coast Guard, according to a statement issued by the Philippine Coast Guard on Saturday.

In a statement, the China Coast Guard asserted that China holds “indisputable sovereignty” over the Spratly Islands, including Sandy Cay, referred to as Tiexian Reef by China. It noted that two Philippine vessels were intercepted and removed in line with the law. The China Coast Guard claimed the Philippine vessels entered the waters near Tiexian Reef without authorization and were attempting to “illegally” land on the reef for sand sample collection.

The Philippine embassy in Beijing and the Chinese embassy in Manila did not quickly reply to requests for comments.

According to the Philippine Coast Guard, which assisted the scientific mission, China sent four small boats from its larger coast guard ships to “harass” two rigid hull inflatable boats operated by the fisheries bureau for personnel transport to Sandy Cay. Additionally, a Chinese navy helicopter flew at an “unsafe altitude” above the vessels, it reported. The Philippine Coast Guard stated that survey operations were halted “due to this ongoing harassment and the lack of concern for safety shown by the Chinese maritime forces.”

On January 16, Manila and Beijing reached an agreement during discussions to identify common interests and explore avenues for collaboration, despite their conflicts regarding territorial claims in the South China Sea. An international arbitration tribunal determined in 2016 that China’s claims, rooted in its historical charts, lack support under international law, a ruling that Beijing rejects.