In this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Coast Guard personnel treat wounded fishermen inside their vessel at the disputed South China Sea on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025. Photo: Philippine Coast Guard via AP

An aerial view of a China Coast Guard ship navigating near the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, August 13, 2025.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

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

Australia said on Thursday that a Chinese fighter jet dropped flares near an Australian air force plane patrolling the South China Sea, accusing Beijing of “unsafe” military conduct.

Beijing swiftly hit back, accusing the Australian plane of “violating Chinese sovereignty and endangering Chinese national security”.

China claims almost all of the South China Sea, despite an international ruling in 2016 concluding this has no legal basis.

The Australian plane was flying a “routine” surveillance patrol over the contested waters on February 11 when the Chinese aircraft approached, Canberra’s defence department said on Thursday.

The Shenyang J-16 strike jet “released flares in close proximity” to the Australian Poseidon surveillance plane, it added, calling the incident “an unsafe and unprofessional manoeuvre that posed a risk to the aircraft and personnel”.

The department said the Australian government had “expressed its concerns” to China over the incident.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said that “without Chinese permission, the Australian military aircraft deliberately intruded into the airspace around China’s Xisha Islands”, Beijing’s name for the Paracel Islands.

“China’s measures to expel the aircraft were legitimate, legal, professional and restrained,” Guo said.

He added that Beijing had “lodged solemn representations” with Canberra to demand an end to “infringements and provocations”.

‘Potential for significant damage’

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles said the flares passed within 30 metres (100 feet) of the aircraft, which typically carried around nine people.

No one was injured but Marles said the move posed the “potential for significant damage”.

He told Sky News that officials had voiced their displeasure with their Chinese counterparts in Canberra and Beijing.

The rebuke coincided with the arrival of three Chinese navy vessels in waters northeast of Australia’s mainland.

Defence department officials said a Chinese frigate and a cruiser had been spotted near Australia’s “maritime approaches” with a supply tanker in tow.

Marles said it appeared to be unrelated to the aircraft incident but the Australian navy had sent its own frigate to shadow their voyage.

“Australia respects the rights of all states to exercise freedom of navigation and overflight in accordance with international law, just as we expect others to respect Australia’s right to do the same,” the defence department said.

“Defence will continue to monitor the activities of the task group in Australia’s maritime approaches with a combination of capabilities, including air and maritime assets.”

String of incidents

The mid-air incident is the latest in a string of episodes between China and Australia in the increasingly contested airspace and shipping lanes of Asia.

A Chinese fighter jet was accused of intercepting an Australian Seahawk helicopter in international airspace last May, dropping flares across its flight path.

In 2023, a Chinese destroyer was accused of bombarding submerged Australian navy divers with sonar pulses in waters off Japan, causing minor injuries.

The divers had been sailing on an Australian navy frigate, the HMAS Toowoomba, tasked with supporting sanctions enforcement efforts in Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

“Australia expects all countries, including China, to operate their militaries in a safe and professional manner,” the defence department said on Thursday.

“For decades, the (Australian Defence Force) has undertaken maritime surveillance activities in the region and does so in accordance with international law, exercising the right to freedom of navigation and overflight in international waters and airspace.”

Washington DC:

China’s naval deployments in the East China Sea and South China Sea are elevated but consistent with other large exercises in the past, a U.S. military official said on Tuesday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The assessment contrasted with statements from Taiwan that described the deployments as the largest in nearly three decades.

“The PRC military activity is elevated in the region, consistent with levels we have seen during other large exercises,” the official said, using the country’s official name, the People’s Republic of China.

China’s military has yet to comment and has not confirmed it is carrying out any exercises.

China, which claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory over the island’s rejection, had been expected to launch drills to express its anger at President Lai Ching-te’s tour of the Pacific that ended on Friday, which included stopovers in Hawaii and the U.S. territory of Guam.

But the U.S. official did not link the deployments to Lai’s travels.

“We do not see the activity in the East China Sea and South China Sea as a response to President Lai’s transit,” the official said.

“This activity is part of a broader increase in the PLA’s military posture and military exercises over the last several years. These activities are destabilizing and risk escalation.”

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

File image of Chinese Coast Guard vessels fire water cannons towards a Philippine vessel
| Photo Credit: Reuters

China’s coast guard said on Monday (December 2, 2024) that it had taken “necessary control measures” against an “illegal gathering” of Philippine vessels in disputed waters of the Iroquois reef in the South China Sea.

A number of Philippine ships have in recent days “illegally” gathered in the waters of the reef in the Spratly Islands under the banner of fishing, Liu Dejun, a spokesperson for China’s coast guard, said in a statement.

In a statement on Monday (December 2, 2024), the Philippine coast guard said that despite the potential harassment from the Chinese coast guard, the Philippine vessels’ confidence “in fishing in the West Philippine Sea has significantly increased due to the firm stance and commitment of the (Philippine) president not to surrender” any of the country’s territory to a foreign power.

The West Philippine Sea is Manila’s term for waters in the South China Sea that fall within its 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone.

Beijing claims sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea, including areas claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. China rejects a 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague that its sweeping claims were not supported by international law.

Reiterating its claims of sovereignty over the Spratly Islands, the Chinese coast guard warned the Philippine side to “immediately stop its infringement and provocations.”

New Delhi:

India has reiterated that it stands for freedom of navigation and overflight, unimpeded lawful commerce and adherence to international law for peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific. Speaking at the 11th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus Forum at Vientiane, Laos, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said that the upcoming code of conduct for the regulation of maritime activity in the South China Sea needs to be consistent with international law.

The Defence Minister said the code should not prejudice the legitimate rights and interests of nations which are not party to these deliberations. “The code should be fully consistent with international law, in particular the UN Convention Law of Sea 1982,” he added.

Singh said, “India believes that genuine, long-term solutions to global problems can only be achieved when nations engage constructively, respecting each other’s perspectives and working toward shared goals in the spirit of cooperation.”

Earlier this year, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, while addressing the 14th East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Laos, also asserted that a “substantive and effective” code of conduct should be in place that is “consistent with international law and should not prejudice legitimate rights and interest of nations not party to the discussions”. He also stressed that the Sea Lines of Communication (SLOC) passing through the South China Sea are crucial for the peace and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific Region.

DISPUTE ON SOUTH CHINA SEA

The South China Sea is a semi-enclosed water channel bordered on the west by Vietnam, on the east by the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei Darussalam, on the south by Indonesia and Malaysia, and the north by China and Taiwan. It is located on the major international shipping route between the Indian Ocean and northeast Asia, including the ports of Korea, China, Russia and Japan, and approximately USD 5.3 trillion worth of goods transit through the South China Sea annually, according to a report by China Power.

The South China Sea also houses rich fishing grounds and over half of the world’s fishing vessels operate in this area, according to a report by BBC. Countries surrounding the water body have wrestled over control of the territory with competing claims for centuries, but the tension has grown in recent years.

Countries have staked claims on islands and various zones in the sea, such as the Paracels and the Spratlys. Though largely uninhabited, the Paracels and the Spratlys may have reserves of natural resources around them.

CHINA’s CLAIM

Of all the countries surrounding the South China Sea, China reportedly claims sovereignty over the largest portion of the territory and demarcates it by its so-called “nine-dash line”. In 1947, Beijing issued a map detailing its claims and insisted its right to the area goes back centuries to when the Paracel and Spratly island chains were regarded as integral parts of the Chinese nation. The nine-dash line that appears on Chinese maps encompassing almost the entirety of the South China Sea includes no coordinates, as per the BBC report.

Taiwan mirrors these claims and says South China Sea islands are part of the territory of the Republic of China.

DISPUTE ON CHINA’s CLAIM

Vietnam disputes Beijing’s account and says China had never claimed sovereignty over the islands before the 1940s. Accounting to Vietnam, both the Paracels and the Spratlys have been actively ruled by it since the 17th Century. It also claims to have documents to prove it.

The Philippines is also another major claimant to the area. The Philippines invokes its geographical proximity to the Spratly Islands as the main basis of its claim. The Philippines also lay claim to the Scarborough Shoal, which China calls its territory.

Malaysia and Brunei also lay claim to parts of the South China Sea that fall within their economic exclusion zones, as defined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS.

UN VERDICT AND CODE OF CONDUCT

In 2013, The Philippines turned to legal arbitration against China’s claims over the South China Sea. On July 12, 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled overwhelmingly in favour of the Philippines, determining that major elements of China’s claims, including its nine-dash line, and recent land reclamation activities-were unlawful. The UN verdict was based on UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) – regarded as the global constitution for the seas signed by 162 nations including China.

Predictably, China refused to accept a UN verdict, maintaining it was “null and void.”

Now, a “code of conduct” (COC) in the South China Sea is being discussed among six countries – the Philippines, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei – that are party to the maritime boundary dispute.

Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Singapore, and Thailand, which are also part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) along with other member countries –Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Philippines, and Vietnam– are part of the negotiations for the code.

Negotiations over a COC have waxed and waned for two decades. Last July, in a bid to expedite an agreement, a three-year deadline was agreed to conclude the talks, according to a report by The Interpreter.

WORLD’s STAKE IN OUTCOME

The COC on the South China Sea will affect India and several other countries like the US, the UK, Japan and Australia. China’s claims threaten sea lines of communication (SLOCs), which are important maritime passages that facilitate trade and the movement of naval forces.

To protect its political, security, and economic interests in the region, the United States has challenged China’s assertive territorial claims and land reclamation efforts by conducting freedom of navigation operations and bolstering support for Southeast Asian partners.

To counter China’s assertive presence, Japan has also sold military ships and equipment to the Philippines and Vietnam to improve their maritime security capacity and to deter Chinese aggression.

A dilapidated but still active Philippine Navy ship BRP Sierra Madre sits at the Second Thomas Shoal, locally known as Ayungin Shoal, at the disputed South China Sea on Aug. 22, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AP

The Philippine Navy transported food and other supplies to a territorial ship outpost in a shoal in the South China Sea without any confrontation with Chinese forces guarding the disputed area, officials said on Friday (November 15, 2024).

The Philippine delivery of supplies and military personnel on Thursday to the Second Thomas Shoal was the third such trip that did not lead to any confrontation since July, when both sides signed a rare deal to stop an alarming spike in violent confrontations.

Also Read | China, Philippines spar over new maritime laws, baseline drawings in South China Sea

“The Armed Forces of the Philippines continues to uphold its mandate of safeguarding Philippine sovereignty and ensuring the welfare of its stationed personnel in the West Philippine Sea,” military spokesperson Col Xerxes Trinidad said, using the Philippine name for the South China Sea.

“There were no untoward incidents during the mission,” Mr. Trinidad said.

The Philippines occupied the shoal by permanently beaching a navy ship in its shallows in 1999, prompting China, which also claims it, to surround the atoll with its coast guard and naval forces in what has been a continuing territorial standoff.

Called Ayungin by the Philippines and Ren’ai Jiao by China, the shoal had been the most dangerous flashpoint in the South China Sea and became the scene of increasingly violent confrontations starting last year that alarmed other governments, led by the United States.

The deal, which has not been made public, outlines a temporary arrangement that lets the Philippines transport supplies and fresh batches of Filipino forces to Manila’s ship outpost without clashing with China’s coast guard, navy and suspected militia ships guarding the shoal.

Neither side conceded its territorial claims under the deal, which only applies to the Second Thomas Shoal, according to Philippine officials.

The agreement was reached after China agreed to drop a demand for the Philippines to notify China in advance of any trip to the shoal and for Chinese forces to board Philippine supply vessels for inspection, two Philippine officials told The Associated Press in July. They spoke on condition of anonymity for lack of authority to discuss the negotiations publicly.

It’s the first known agreement by China with any one rival claimant country over a specific shoal in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost in its entirety.

Before the deal was reached, Chinese coast guard and navy forces had used powerful water cannons and dangerous blocking manoeuvres to prevent Philippine supply vessels from reaching Manila’s fragile outpost at the shoal — the long-grounded and rusting warship, the BRP Sierra Madre.

In the worst confrontation, Chinese forces on speedboats repeatedly rammed and then boarded two Philippine navy boats on June 17 to prevent Filipino personnel from transferring food and other supplies including firearms to the BRP Sierra Madre, the Philippine military said.

Also Read | Philippine President angers China with new laws to demarcate South China Sea territories

The Chinese forces seized the Philippine navy boats and damaged them with machetes and improvised spears. They also seized seven M4 rifles, which were packed in cases, and other supplies in a chaotic faceoff that wounded several Filipino navy personnel. The assault was captured in video and photos that were later made public by Philippine officials.

China and the Philippines blamed each other for the confrontation. The United States, Japan and Australia were among those who condemned the Chinese actions at the shoal.

While clashes have stopped at the Second Thomas Shoal, sporadic confrontations have continued elsewhere in the South China Sea. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Taiwan and, at times, Indonesia, have also been involved in the long-seething territorial disputes in the busy waterway.

Members of the Philippine Coast Guard stand alert as a Chinese Coast Guard vessel blocks their way. File.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The Philippines’ Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday (November 13, 2024) it summoned China’s ambassador to protest Beijing’s drawing of baselines around the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea.

“The said baselines infringe upon Philippine sovereignty and contravene international law,” the ministry said in a statement.

The move follows China’s definition on Sunday of the baseline for “territorial waters” around the shoal, which Beijing claims as Huangyan Island. The shoal is a key point of contention over sovereignty and fishing rights.

In response, China’s ambassador Huang Xilian to the Philippines said late on Wednesday the baseline was a “necessary response” to the Philippines’ new maritime law and a “routine measure” to strengthen maritime management, according to a statement from its embassy in the Philippines.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. last week signed the Maritime Zones Act and the Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act into law to strengthen the country’s maritime claims and bolster its territorial integrity.

China had summoned the Philippines’ ambassador to make “solemn representations” shortly after the acts were signed.

Huang reiterated China’s objections to the new laws, warning that China would take necessary measures to protect its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights.

“We urge the Philippines to immediately cease any unilateral actions that could escalate disputes and complicate the situation, and to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea,” the embassy statement said.

Tensions between China and the Philippines over the South China Sea have escalated throughout the year, particularly over the Scarborough Shoal.

China claims nearly the entire South China Sea, a vital waterway for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce, parts of which are also claimed by Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam.