U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called China’s conduct in the South China Sea disturbing on Wednesday, reaffirming Washington’s defense obligations to the Philippines following a string of maritime confrontations with Beijing over the past week.
Rubio’s comments came after the Philippines accused a Chinese coast guard vessel of firing a water cannon at one of its government fisheries ships near Scarborough Shoal on Thursday, with the blast landing an indirect hit. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the ASEAN meeting in Manila, Rubio said the incident was witnessed by the entire world and that it troubled him, adding that the U.S. has a role to play in the region and has made clear it won’t abandon its allies.
That confrontation followed an earlier one on Monday at Second Thomas Shoal, where the Philippine military said a Filipino sailor was injured after being struck with a baton by Chinese Coast Guard personnel. The U.S. State Department has characterized China’s actions as dangerous and provocative.
Scarborough Shoal, much like Second Thomas Shoal, has become one of the central flashpoints in the long-running and increasingly tense standoff between the Philippines and China over territorial claims in the South China Sea. The dispute has persisted despite a 2016 international arbitration ruling that found China’s claims to the waters have no legal basis, a decision Beijing continues to reject.
Read more about this topic: China calls Philippines a “troublemaker” in South China sea dispute
A previous violent clash at Second Thomas Shoal in June 2024, during which a Filipino sailor lost a finger, eventually led both countries to reach a provisional arrangement governing resupply missions to the area. Manila’s Foreign Ministry said Thursday that arrangement does not recognize any foreign jurisdiction over the area and does not require the Philippines to seek China’s permission before carrying out resupply runs.
The Philippines regularly delivers supplies to a small contingent of soldiers stationed aboard the BRP Sierra Madre, a World War Two-era warship it deliberately grounded on Second Thomas Shoal in 1999 to reinforce its territorial claim.
China, for its part, said Thursday that it had tracked and driven away two Philippine vessels it accused of intruding into waters near the disputed shoal, which Beijing refers to as Huangyan Dao, despite having issued a warning beforehand.
In a statement, China’s Coast Guard called on the Philippines to immediately halt what it described as infringing and provocative behavior, while reasserting its sovereignty claims over the shoal. The agency said it had taken necessary measures, including tracking, monitoring and interception, to remove the Philippine vessels, describing its actions as standard, professional and lawful.
