Manila – The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) announced Sunday that Chinese vessels deliberately obstructed a multi‑agency operation aimed at stopping a foreign fishing boat suspected of using explosives near Thitu Island, the Philippines’ most valuable outpost in the Spratly archipelago.
Details of the encounter
The PCG, together with the Philippine Navy and the Philippine National Police Maritime Group, responded to reports of blast fishing near Sandy Cays 2 and 3, about three nautical miles west of Thitu Island (known locally as Pag‑asa). While the Philippine team was on the water, two China Coast Guard ships sounded their horns, radio‑challenged the Filipino vessels and then shadowed and blocked their boats. A People’s Liberation Army Navy helicopter circled the area four times, an act the PCG called an “unnecessary act of intimidation.”
According to the PCG, the Philippine team ordered the suspected foreign fishing vessel to stop and transmitted several radio warnings. The vessel ignored the commands and headed southwest toward Subi Reef, one of the seven artificial islands China has built in the Spratlys to reinforce its sovereignty claims.
Safety concerns and withdrawal
Because the Chinese presence created a hazardous environment, Philippine authorities terminated the pursuit and returned to Thitu Island. The PCG emphasized that the China Coast Guard has no law‑enforcement authority in the territorial sea surrounding Thitu and that its interference “made it easier for a suspected violator to escape.” The PCG also rejected any Chinese claim that its vessels had been expelled from the area.
Broader pattern of confrontations
The incident follows a recent report of a Chinese J‑16 fighter jet repeatedly approaching a Philippine patrol aircraft over the contested Scarborough Shoal, raising aviation‑safety concerns. The Armed Forces of the Philippines described these actions as part of a “recurring pattern of unsafe and coercive behaviour” against Philippine vessels and aircraft conducting lawful operations.
Thitu Island, covering just 37 hectares (0.14 square miles), is the largest and most strategically important of the nine Philippine‑held features in the Spratly chain, located roughly 450 km (280 miles) from the Philippine mainland.
Official responses
The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the weekend incidents.
These developments underscore the ongoing tension in the South China Sea, where Manila continues to assert its sovereign rights and protect its maritime resources against what it views as unlawful interference by China.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
