China and the Philippines have clashed repeatedly around outcroppings in the South China Sea, which China claims almost in its entirety. File
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

A Chinese military helicopter flies close to a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic (BFAR) aircraft above Scarborough shoal on February 18, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP

A Chinese navy helicopter flew within 10 feet (3 meters) of a Philippine patrol plane on Tuesday (February 18, 2025) in a disputed area of the South China Sea, prompting the Filipino pilot to warn by radio: “You are flying too close, you are very dangerous.”

The Chinese helicopter was attempting to force a Cessna Caravan turboprop plane belonging to the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources out of what China claims is its airspace over the hotly disputed Scarborough Shoal off the northwestern Philippines.

An Associated Press journalist and other invited foreign media on the plane witnessed the tense 30-minute standoff as the Philippine plane pressed on with its low-altitude patrol around Scarborough with the Chinese navy helicopter hovering close above it or flying to its left in cloudy weather.

“You are flying too close, you are very dangerous and endangering the lives of our crew and passengers,” the Philippine pilot told the Chinese navy helicopter by radio at one point. “Keep away and distance your aircraft from us, you are violating the safety standard set by FAA and ICAO.”

The pilot was referring to the standard distance between aircraft required by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and the International Civil Aviation Organization to prevent air disasters.

There was no sign that the Philippine plane had to alter its planned path and altitude to avoid a collision.

The Philippine Coast Guard and the Bureau of Fisheries said in a statement that they remain “committed to asserting our sovereignty, sovereign rights and maritime jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea, despite the aggressive and escalatory actions of China.”

They referred to the Philippine name for the stretch of waters in the South China Sea closer to the Philippines’ western coast.

The Chinese military, referring to Scarborough Shoal by its Chinese name, said the plane had “illegally entered the airspace of China’s Huangyan Island without the Chinese government’s permission.”

The Chinese Southern Theater Command organized naval and air forces to track and warn the plane away, Senior Col. Tian Junli, spokesperson for the command, said in a written statement posted online.

The Philippines “confused right and wrong and spread false narratives,” the statement said.

Tuesday’s encounter, which is expected to be protested by the Philippine government, is the latest flashpoint in a decades-long territorial standoff in one of the world’s busiest trade routes, which involves China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan .

Confrontations on the high seas have spiked between Chinese and Philippine coast guards in the last two years at Scarborough and Second Thomas Shoal, where a grounded Philippine navy ship has served as a military territorial outpost since 1999 but has since been closely surrounded by Chinese coast guard, navy and other ships.

China deployed its naval force around Scarborough after a tense standoff with Philippine ships in 2012.

The following year, the Philippines brought its disputes with China to international arbitration. A 2016 decision by a United Nations-backed arbitration panel invalidated China’s expansive claim in the South China Sea based on the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea.

China, a signatory to the UNCLOS like the Philippines, refused to participate in the arbitration, rejected its outcome and continues to defy it.

Faced by China’s military might, the Philippines under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has resorted to a shame campaign — embedding Philippine and foreign journalists in its sea and air patrols in a bid to expose Beijing’s increasingly assertive actions.

The Philippines has also been strengthening its security alliances with the United States, Japan, Australian, France, Canada, the European Union and other Western countries to shore up its external defense.

The United States says it’s obligated to defend the Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea. China has warned the U.S. and its allies not to meddle in what it calls a purely Asian dispute.

Zhang Youxia, Vice Chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission, second from right, holds a meeting with White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, second from left. during a meeting at the Bayi building in Beijing, on August 29, 2024
| Photo Credit: AP

United States National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met Thursday (August 29, 2024) with a top Chinese military official as the two countries strengthen communication in an effort to prevent differences over the South China Sea and Taiwan from spiralling into conflict.

The meeting came one day after the White House said that both countries would plan for a phone call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden in the coming weeks.

Mr. Sullivan was wrapping up a three-day trip to China, his first as national security adviser and one aimed at stabilising bilateral relations to avoid conflict.

His main talks were held over the past day and a half with Wang Yi, the foreign minister and the ruling Communist Party’s top foreign policy official.

The meeting Thursday was with Gen. Zhang Youxia, one of two vice chairs of the Central Military Commission, an organisation that Xi personally heads. It was a rare meeting with a US official that came at a time when both sides are eager to keep relations on an even keel ahead of a change in the US presidency in January.

“Your request to meet with me shows the value you attach to military security and the relationship between our militaries,” Zhang told Sullivan in opening remarks.

A White House statement after the talks said the two had “recognised the progress in sustained, regular military-military communications over the past ten months” and noted the agreement announced Wednesday to hold a telephone call between commanders at the theatre-level in the near future.

China suspended communication between the two militaries and in a few other fields after a senior US lawmaker, then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, visited Taiwan in August 2022. Talks were only gradually resumed more than a year later, after Xi and Biden met outside San Francisco in November.

A theatre-level call would be between Adm. Samuel Paparo, who heads the US Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii, and his Chinese counterpart, said Danny Russel, a vice president at the Asia Society Policy Institute in New York.

“This theatre command-level dialogue is critical for crisis prevention but something the Chinese military has been resisting,” Russel said.

A White House statement after talks with Wang concluded Wednesday said both sides would keep lines of communication open, including planning for a “leader-level call” in the coming weeks. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Wang and Sullivan discussed “a new round of interactions between the two countries’ heads of state to take place in the near future.”

There was no indication whether the two leaders might meet in person before Biden leaves the Oval Office.

In this handout photo provided by the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs, Philippine Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro, left, and Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Chen Xiaodong shake hands during the Philippines and China 9th Meeting of their Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on the South China Sea in Manila, Philippines, on July 2, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

China and the Philippines held a crucial meeting on July 2 to try and ease escalating tensions following their worst confrontation in the disputed South China Sea that sparked fears of a wider conflict that could involve Manila’s ally, the United States.

There was no mention of any major agreement to try to prevent a repeat of the chaotic June 17 clash at Second Thomas Shoal that caused injuries to Filipino navy personnel and damaged two military boats.

Also read | In South China Sea dispute, a bolder Philippines tests Beijing’s resolve

The shoal off the northwestern Philippines has emerged as the most dangerous flashpoint in the disputed waters, which China claims virtually in its entirety. Chinese naval and civilian vessels have surrounded the Philippine marines aboard a grounded ship, tried to prevent their resupply and demanded the Philippines pull out.

The Chinese and Philippine delegations “affirmed their commitment to de-escalate tensions without prejudice to their respective positions,” the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said in a statement late on Tuesday. “There was substantial progress on developing measures to manage the situation at sea, but significant differences remain.”

Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Theresa Lazaro told her Chinese counterpart, Vice Foreign Minister Chen Xiaodong, “that the Philippines will be relentless in protecting its interests and upholding its sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction” in the South China Sea, according to the Philippine side.

An agreement was signed to improve communications during emergencies at sea and both sides agreed to continue talks on enhancing ties between their coast guards but no details were provided. There was also another confidence-building plan to convene an academic forum among scientists and academics to improve marine scientific cooperation.

Ahead of the meeting, the Philippines planned to formally ask China’s delegation to return at least seven rifles that Chinese coast guard personnel seized during the June 17 faceoff at the shoal and pay for damage, a Philippine official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for lack of authority to discuss the sensitive matter publicly.

The Asian neighbors agreed to hold what they call the Bicameral Consultative Mechanism meetings, first held in 2017, to peacefully manage their conflicts. But the high-sea confrontations have persisted especially under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who, unlike his predecessor, has nurtured closer military and defense ties with the United States as a counterweight to China.

Apart from the Philippines and China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei also lay overlapping claims to the strategic sea, which has rich fishing areas and potentially more deposits of gas than what has been found mostly in the fringes by a few coastal states so far.

Sporadic confrontations have flared between Chinese forces and those of Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia in the past but the Southeast Asian nations have resisted aggressively confronting China for fear of destabilizing their substantial economic ties.

Under Marcos, who took office in 2022, the Philippines launched a campaign to expose aggressive Chinese actions by making public videos and photographs and allowing journalists to join coast guard patrol ships, which have figured in dangerous faceoffs with Beijing’s forces.

The U.S. has no claims to the contested waters, but it has deployed warships and fighter jets for patrols that it says aim to ensure freedom of navigation and overflight and to reassure allies like the Philippines and Japan, which also has territorial disputes with China over islands in the East China Sea.

After last month’s confrontation in Second Thomas Shoal, where Chinese forces were caught on video brandishing machetes, an axe and improvised spears, Washington renewed a warning that it’s obligated to help defend the Philippines under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty if Filipino forces, including the coast guard, come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea.

Marcos said the Chinese actions would not activate the treaty because no shots were fired.

The Philippine government accused Chinese ships of ramming and damaging their boats in the South China Sea during a confrontation in waters off the Second Thomas Shoal, home to a garrison of Filipino troops.
| Photo Credit: AFP

A Chinese vessel and a Philippine supply ship collided near the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea on June 17, China’s coast guard said, in the latest flare-up of escalating territorial disputes that have sparked alarm.

The coast guard said a Philippine supply ship entered waters near the Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef in the Spratly Islands, part of a territory claimed by several nations.

The Philippines says the shoal falls within its internationally recognized exclusive economic zone and often cites a 2016 international arbitration ruling invalidating China’s expansive South China Sea claims based on historical grounds.

The Chinese coast guard said the Philippine craft “ignored China’s repeated solemn warnings … and dangerously approached a Chinese vessel in normal navigation in an unprofessional manner, resulting in a collision.”

“The Philippines is entirely responsible for this,” the coast guard said in its statement on the social media platform WeChat.

Meanwhile, the Philippine military called the Chinese coast guard’s report “deceptive and misleading,” and said it would “not discuss operational details on the legal humanitarian rotation and resupply mission at Ayungin Shoal, which is well within our exclusive economic zone.” It used the Philippine name for the shoal, where Filipino navy personnel have transported food, medicine and other supplies to a long-grounded warship that has served as Manila’s territorial outpost.

Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said his country’s armed forces would resist “China’s dangerous and reckless behaviour,” which “contravenes their statements of good faith and decency.”

“We will exert our utmost in order to fulfil our sworn mandate to protect our territorial integrity, sovereignty, and sovereign rights,” Mr. Teodoro said. “It should now be clear to the international community that China’s actions are the true obstacles to peace and stability in the South China Sea.”

The United States condemned China’s “aggressive, dangerous manoeuvres” near the shoal, which “caused bodily injury, damaged Philippine vessels and hindered lawful maritime operations to supply food, water and essential supplies to Philippine personnel within the Philippine exclusive economic zone,” U.S. Ambassador to Manila MaryKay Carlson said in a statement on X.

Two speedboats — attempting to deliver construction materials and other supplies to a military vessel stationed at the shoal — accompanied the supply ship, according to China’s Foreign Ministry, which described its coast guard’s manoeuvre as “professional, restrained, reasonable and lawful.”

The Foreign Ministry did not expand on the extent of the damage to the Chinese or Philippine vessels.

Several incidents have happened in recent months near the shoal which lies less than 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) from The Philippines coast and where it maintains an outpost aboard the BRP Sierra Madre, which had been encrusted with rust since it was deliberately grounded in 1999 but remains an actively commissioned military vessel, meaning an attack on it could be considered by the Philippines as an act of war.

China has increasingly become assertive in pressing its claim to virtually the entire South China Sea, which has led to a rising number of direct conflicts with other countries in the region, most notably the Philippines and Vietnam.

A new law by China, which took effect Saturday, authorizes its coast guard to seize foreign ships “that illegally enter China’s territorial waters” and to detain foreign crews for up to 60 days. The law renewed a reference to 2021 legislation that says China’s coast guard can fire upon foreign ships if necessary.

At least three coastal governments with claims to the waters — the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan — have said they would not recognize the law.

The territorial disputes have strained relations and sparked fears the conflict could bring China and the United States, a longtime treaty ally of the Philippines, into a military confrontation. Washington lays no territorial claims to the busy seaway, a key global trade route, but has warned that it’s obligated to defend the Philippines if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack in the South China Sea.

Aside from China, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei are also involved in the long-seething territorial disputes, which are regarded as a flashpoint in Asia and a delicate fault line in the longstanding U.S.-China rivalry in the region.

Indonesia has also confronted Chinese coast guard and fishing fleets in the past in the gas-rich waters off the Natuna islands in the fringes of the South China Sea where it blew Chinese fishing boats it had taken under custody. Its navy also fired warning shots at Chinese vessels straying into what Jakarta regards as its exclusive economic zone.

Manila:

The Philippine government on Monday accused Chinese ships of ramming and damaging its boats in the South China Sea during a confrontation in waters off the Second Thomas Shoal, home to a garrison of Filipino troops.

“The People’s Liberation Army-Navy, China Coast Guard and Chinese Maritime Militia vessels engaged in dangerous maneuvers, including ramming and towing,” Manila’s national task force on the West Philippine Sea said in a statement.

“Their actions put at risk the lives of our personnel and damaged our boats.”

The Second Thomas Shoal has seen an escalating number of confrontations between Chinese and Philippine ships in recent months.

These have often taken place during Philippine resupply missions to a garrison of Filipino troops on a grounded navy vessel, the Sierra Madre, aimed at asserting Manila’s claims to the reef.

The shoal lies about 200 kilometres (120 miles) from the western Philippine island of Palawan and more than 1,000 kilometres from China’s nearest major landmass, Hainan island.

The Chinese coast guard said early Monday a Philippine resupply ship in the area had “ignored many solemn warnings from the Chinese side” and that they “took control measures” against it “in accordance with the law.”

It “approached the… Chinese vessel in an unprofessional way, resulting in a collision”, Beijing said.

Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro, vowed to defend his country’s sovereignty, saying China’s “dangerous and reckless behaviour in the West Philippine Sea shall be resisted”.

“It should now be clear to the international community that China’s actions are the true obstacles to peace and stability in the South China Sea,” he added.

The Philippine government statement did not specify which boats were rammed and the extent of the damage.

Manila’s allies voiced concern over China’s actions.

The United States ambassador to Philippines, MaryKay Carlson said in a post on social media X that Washington “condemns” China’s “aggressive dangerous maneuvers which caused bodily injury, damaged Philippine vessels, and hindered lawful maritime operations.”

Japan’s ambassador Endo Kazuya expressed his country’s “grave concern over the repeated dangerous and aggressive actions” by the China Coast Guard.

“We oppose any threat or use of force contrary to international law,” reacted the French ambassador Marie Fontanel in a social media pos

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Representational image of a fisherman raising a Philippine flag on his boat in the South China Sea
| Photo Credit: AP

A Chinese vessel and a Philippine supply ship collided near the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea on Monday, China’s coast guard said.

The coast guard said a Philippine supply ship entered waters near the Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef in the Spratly Islands that’s part of territory claimed by several nations.

ALSO READ | China says U.S. plays ‘dishonourable role’ supporting Philippines in South China Sea

The Chinese coast guard said in a statement on the social media platform WeChat the Philippine supply ship “ignored China’s repeated solemn warnings… and dangerously approached a Chinese vessel in normal navigation in an unprofessional manner, resulting in a collision”.

“The Philippines is entirely responsible for this,” it added.

The Philippines says the shoal, which lies less than 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) from its coast, falls within its internationally recognised exclusive economic zone and often cites a 2016 international arbitration ruling that invalidated China’s expansive claims in the South China Sea based on historical grounds.

Several incidents have happened in recent months near the shoal, where the Philippines maintains a post aboard the BRP Sierra Madre ship.

ALSO READ |South China Sea: Asia’s disputed waters

The territorial disputes have strained relations and sparked fears the conflict could bring China and the United States, a longtime treaty ally of the Philippines, into a military confrontation.

Washington lays no territorial claims to the busy seaway, a key global trade route, but has warned that it’s obligated to defend the Philippines if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack in the South China Sea.

Aside from China and the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan are also involved in the long-seething territorial disputes, which are regarded as a flashpoint in Asia and a delicate fault line in the longstanding U.S.-China rivalry in the region.

In this image made from video provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Coast Guard vessel, BRP BAGACAY (MRRV-4410) is water cannoned by Chinese Coast Guards as it tried to approach the waters near Scarborough Shoal locally known as Bajo De Masinloc at the South China Sea on April 30, 2024
| Photo Credit: AP

Chinese coast guard ships fired water cannons at two Philippine patrol vessels on April 30 near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, causing minor damage to one vessel, in the latest flareup in an increasingly tense territorial conflict.

There were no immediate reports of injuries in the incident off Scarborough Shoal, one of two hotly disputed areas where confrontations between China and the Philippines have flared on and off since last year.

Also read: South China Sea | Asia’s disputed waters

A Philippine coast guard ship and an accompanying fisheries vessel were patrolling the waters off Scarborough Shoal when four Chinese coast guard ships, backed by six suspected militia ships, executed dangerous blocking maneuvers, Philippine coast guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela said.

A Chinese coast guard ship used a water cannon against the fisheries vessel, the BRP Bankaw, and two other Chinese coast guard ships hit the Philippine coast guard ship, the BRP Bagacay, simultaneously from both sides, damaging part of its deck railing and a canopy, Tarriela said.

Chinese officials did not immediately issue any comment. They have repeatedly insisted on China’s sovereignty over virtually all of the South China Sea, a key global trade route, and warned they would defend their territory at any cost.

The Philippine vessels pressed on with their patrol despite the Chinese coast guard’s actions, Tarriela said,

“They were not deterred and will persist in carrying out their legitimate operations to support Filipino fishermen and ensure their safety,” Tarriela said in a statement. He said the Philippine ships were deployed to distribute fuel and food to Filipino fishermen on the high seas.

The Chinese coast guard has also re-installed a floating barrier across the entrance to the shoal’s vast fishing lagoon, he said. The Philippine coast guard removed a similar barrier in the past to allow Filipinos to fish in the lagoon.

In addition to the Philippines and China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have also been involved in the territorial disputes.

The increasing frequency of the skirmishes between the Philippines and China, which have injured Filipino navy personnel and damaged supply boats in the past, has sparked fears the territorial conflict could degenerate into an armed confrontation that could put China and the United States on a collision course.

The U.S. lays no claims to the South China Sea but has warned that it is obligated to defend the Philippines, a longtime treaty ally, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack including in the contested waters.