China on Wednesday, Dec. 4, claimed it was the Philippine vessel that rammed into the larger Chinese ship in the waters off Scarborough Shoal.
While many countries already condemned China for ramming the Philippine vessel, China maintained they were not the one that did so.
The Chinese Embassy in Manila said it was a Philippine vessel that supposedly “intentionally rammed into a CCG (Chinese Coast Guard) ship” in the waters off Scarborough (known in China as Huangyan Dao), prompting the agency to warn Manila to immediately stop its supposed infringements as well as inflammatory actions.
And when China eventually fired water cannon at the Philippine vessels, they did so “lawfully to control the situation,” the embassy quoted CCG spokesman Liu Dejun as saying.
Tensions flared anew in Scarborough after Chinese ships allegedly fired water cannon and intentionally struck Philippine vessels that were patrolling in the West Philippine Sea on Wednesday.
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) conducted a routine maritime patrol in the vicinity of the shoal to support Filipino fishermen when they encountered “aggressive actions” from the China Coast Guard (CCG) and People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy, according to PCG spokesperson for West Philippine Sea (WPS) Commodore Jay Tarriela.
Meanwhile, several countries spoke out against China’s actions.
US Ambassador to Manila MaryKay Carlson said China’s “unlawful use of water cannons and dangerous maneuvers disrupted a Philippine maritime operation,” and put people’s lives at risk.
“We condemn these actions and stand with our likeminded friends, partners, allies in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Carlson said.
The ambassadors of the Netherlands and New Zealand also voiced their concern.
Dutch Ambassador Marielle Geraedts said the incident was concerning, while New Zealand Ambassador Catherine McIntosh shared the embassy’s stand that what China did was as “deeply worrying” as the presence of the PLAN in the waters.