The month of August has witnessed one of the most, if not the most, number of times that China made aggressive action against the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea.
Beijing even ended the month by ramming on Saturday, Aug. 31, a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) ship, BRP Teresa Magbanua, three times without any provocation from the Philippine side, PCG spokesman Jay Tarriela said.
The first provocation by China that was experienced by the Philippines after the month of July happened on Aug. 3.
It was when the PCG monitored a Chinese research vessel in the waters off Escoda Shoal, which is located well within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Then came Aug. 8, when a real threat came towards the Philippine side.
The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) reported that China's People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) harassed a Philippine Air Force (PAF) patrol aircraft by firing off flares into the latter's route over the West Philippine Sea.
"The PAF NC-212i aircraft never posed a threat to the PLAAF jets. By launching flares in the flight path of the PAF plane, the PLAAF fighters exhibited hazardous intent," the task force said.
Meanwhile, in the morning of Aug. 19, PCG ships BRP Bagacay and BRP Cape Engaño sustained structural damages after colliding with CCG vessels while en route Patag and Lawak Islands to supply provision to the Philippines troops stationed in the West Philippine Sea.
NTF-WPS reported that the two ships were navigating in the waters off Escoda Shoal when they were subjected to aggressive maneuvers as well as ramming by CCG vessels.
After that, three cases of harassment were reported in three consecutive days—from Aug. 24 to 26.
On Aug. 24, the task force said that Beijing launched flares from their militarized and reclaimed island in Zamora Reef towards a Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) aircraft.
The BFAR plane was monitoring and intercepting poachers encroaching upon the country's EEZ on Aug. 22 when the incident happened.
"While the BFAR was conducting the routine patrol, the PRC unjustifiably deployed flares from Zamora Reef. This same BFAR aircraft also faced harassment from the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) on Aug. 19 during an MDA flight near Bajo de Masinloc," the task force added.
The Philippine government said that Beijing was not provoked, "yet its actions demonstrated hazardous intent that jeopardized the safety of the personnel onboard the BFAR aircraft."
On Aug. 25, eight Chinese vessels illegally operating harassed a lone BFAR vessel, BRP Datu Sanday, in the waters off Hasa-Hasa and Escoda Shoals, according to the task force.
"The BRP Datu Sanday was targeted by the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) 626 and multiple China Coast Guard (CCG) ships, which attempted to encircle and block the humanitarian mission," the Philippine government described the incident.
"The CCG vessels made close perilous maneuvers that resulted in ramming, blasted horns, and deployed water cannons against the BFAR vessel, eventually leading to the latter’s engine failure and forcing an early termination of the humanitarian operation," it added.
And prior to the Aug. 31 incident, a CCG vessel illegally blocked two PCG humanitarian mission vessels on Aug. 26 while en route to deliver "vital food and supplies to our personnel stationed aboard the BRP Teresa Magbanua."
The Philippines said that China "unfortunately...deployed an excessive force comprised of 40 vessels, including six CCG vessels, three People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) warships, in an attempt to obstruct our lawful humanitarian operation."
"There were also 31 Chinese Maritime Militia (CMM) vessels in the vicinity waters of Escoda Shoal. Such actions resulted in our two 44-meter Multi-Role Response Vessels (MRRV) being unable to safely deliver essential supplies," the Philippines said.