THE Armed Forces reported a collision between a China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel and an AFP boat going to the Ayungin Shoal for a resupply mission.
The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) said the incident occurred at around 6:04 a.m., when the “dangerous blocking maneuvers” of China Coast Guard vessel 5203 (CCGV 5203) caused the collision with the AFP-contracted indigenous resupply boat Unaiza May 2 (UM2) approximately 13.5 nautical miles east northeast of the BRP Sierra Madre.
The UM2 was conducting a regular and routine rotation and resupply (RORE) mission to BRP Sierra Madre which has been grounded at the Ayungin Shoal since 1999.
“The provocative, irresponsible, and illegal action of CCGV 5203 imperiled the safety of the crew of UM2,” the task force said in a statement.
During the same RORE mission, the NTF-WPS said Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessel MRRV 4409’s port side was also “bumped” by Chinese maritime militia vessel 00003 (CMMV 00003) while it was lying approximately 6.4NM northeast of Ayungin Shoal.
The task force condemned the incident, saying it violated the Philippines’ sovereign rights.
“The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) condemns in the strongest degree the latest dangerous, irresponsible, and illegal actions of the CCG and the Chinese Maritime Militia done this morning, in violation of Philippine sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction and in utter blatant disregard of the United Nations Charter, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS) and relevant international maritime conventions, and the 2016 Arbitral Award,” it said in a statement.
Earlier on Sunday, the CCG said it ‘lawfully’ blocked Philippine vessels transporting “illegal construction materials” to BRP Sierra Madre.
“The Chinese coast guard ship intercepted the trespassing Philippine ship in accordance with the law even though multiple warnings were ineffective,” it added.
“The Philippines’ actions seriously violated the international rules for avoiding collisions at sea and threatened the navigation safety of our ships. Our operations were professional, standardized, legitimate and legal, and the responsibility lies entirely with the Philippines,” the statement read.
Ayungin Shoal sits just 194 kilometers off Palawan province and is within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
The NTF-WPS said the RORE mission is still ongoing, with another Philippine boat, Unaiza May 1 (UM1), able to “successfully” reach BRP Sierra Madre to resupply the troops stationed there.
Relevant authorities were also informed of the incident and developments regarding the resupply mission, it added.
