It is China, and not the Philippines, that is escalating tension in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) as proven by the unprecedented collision of both countries' vessels in Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, the National Task Force for WPS (NTF-WPS) said on Monday, Oct. 23.

This, as the NTF-WPS condemned "in the strongest degree the latest dangerous, irresponsible and illegal blocking maneuvers" of the China Coast Guard (CCG) in consort with the Chinese maritime militia (CMM) that led to the collision of a CCG vessel with "Unaiza Mae 2", an indigenous boat bringing supplies to troops stationed at BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, and the bumping of a CMM vessel with Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) ship BRP Cabra during the latest rotation and reprovision (RORE) mission of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Sunday.

The collision was unprecedented, marking the first time that it happened in the 11 RORE missions in Ayungin Shoal this year.

"The provocative actions are on the part of China. It is not the Philippines that is increasing tension, it is China that is increasing tension in the West Philippine Sea especially by interfering and blocking our legitimate resupply mission," NTF-WPS spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said.

He noted that the Philippine government considers the collision as "alarming."

"It was serious enough that it placed the safety of our Filipino crewmen on the line and it could have cost more disastrous results. We are just very thankful that nothing happened in this event, but it may happen in the future," Malaya said.

During the latest RORE mission, CCG 5203 collided with Unaiza Mae 2 at approximately 13.5 nautical miles east northeast from the position of BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal.

Meanwhile, CMM vessel 00003 bumped the port side of BRP Cabra, which was escorting Unaiza Mae 1 while it was lying at approximately 6.4 nautical miles northeast of Ayungin Shoal.

Record from the NTF-WPS showed that four CCG ships and four CMM vessels surrounded the Unaiza Mae 1 and Unaiza Mae 2 while being escorted by BRP Cabra and BRP Sindangan in an attempt to block the mission.

In the immediate aftermath of the incident, the CCG released a statement accusing the Philippine vessels of intentionally crossing the bow of their ships and deliberately reversing their course which supposedly caused the collision.

The CCG said that the Philippines violated their sovereignty by operating in the area, which they claim as their own.

But Malaya refuted this: "The statements made by China are not supported by evidence. Parang kinuha lang sa hangin (It seems they just get them from air)." 

"The Unaiza Mae 2 was moving on a regular direction and it was the Chinese Coast Guard vessel that blocked the path. I think that kind of statement collapses in the face of overwhelming evidence," he added.

He insisted that the RORE mission is a legitimate operation by the AFP, and is conducted within the 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone of the Philippines.

"While no lives were lost in the collisions yesterday, China’s provocative and irresponsible actions clearly impeded once again the safety of the Filipino crew," Malaya added.

Meanwhile, PCG spokesperson for WPS Commodore Jay Tarriela said the wooden-hulled boats won't stand a chance against the bigger CCG ships so China's statement that the Philippine vessels were the ones that caused the collision was not true.

"The Chinese Coast Guard didn’t care whether she [Unaiza Mae 2] was damaged, whether she is unseaworthy. The Chinese Maritime Militia Vessel and the China Coast Guard still pushed the Unaiza May away from Ayungin Shoal," Tarriela noted.

Nonetheless, Malaya said the resupply mission will still continue despite the escalating tension in the WPS.

"The Philippines will never be deterred by the provocative actions of China. We will continue to repair, maintain and sustain our troops in BRP Sierra Madre while said ship is on duty in defense of our sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea," he stated.

"We call on China to stop its provocative actions, act responsibly in accordance with the international law and UNCLOS [United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea], respect the 2016 arbitral award and defend the rules-based international order," he added.