MANILA, Dec 15 (Reuters) – The Philippines said on Monday it will protest the Chinese coast guard’s “harassment and endangerment” of Filipino fishermen in a South China Sea shoal last week.
Three Filipino fishermen were injured and two fishing vessels damaged when Chinese coast guard ships blasted water cannon and cut their anchor lines near Sabina Shoal on Friday, Manila’s coast guard said over the weekend.
The Philippines said it was alarmed by the actions of China’s coast guard, saying the use of water cannons and dangerous manoeuvres that cause injury and damage “cannot be justified”.
“The Philippines will undertake the appropriate diplomatic response and register its strong objection to these actions and demand that China cease such aggressive acts,” the Philippines’ maritime council said in a statement.
Presidential press officer Claire Castro told reporters that the Philippines will file a demarche to the Chinese embassy on Monday, citing information from the foreign minister.
Neither China’s foreign ministry nor its embassy in Manila responded immediately to a request for comment. On Friday, China’s coast guard said it had driven away multiple Philippine vessels and taken “control measures”.
The Philippines said that the Chinese statement was “deeply troubling”.
“We call on the CCG, in particular, to act responsibly, adhere to international standards of conduct, and place the preservation of life at sea above actions that sow fear and endanger civilians,” the council said.
Treaty ally the United States has also condemned China’s use of water cannons and the cutting of anchor lines of Filipino fishermen.
“We stand with our Philippine allies as they confront China’s provocative actions and increasingly dangerous tactics against its neighbors, which undermine regional stability,” U.S. State Department principal deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement.
Sabina Shoal, which China refers to as Xianbin Reef and the Philippines as the Escoda Shoal, lies in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone 150 km (95 miles) west of Palawan province.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a waterway supporting more than $3 trillion of annual commerce. The areas Beijing claims cut into the exclusive economic zones of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
An international arbitral tribunal ruled in 2016 that Beijing’s sweeping claims had no basis under international law, a decision China rejects.
(Reporting by Mikhail Flores; Editing by David Stanway)
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