US Sends Warships to Disputed Sea After Chinese Ships Collide
Udumbara
The United States sailed warships near the disputed Scarborough Shoal on Aug. 13, days after two Chinese ships collided while chasing a Philippine vessel in the region.
Two U.S. Navy vessels—USS Higgins and USS Cincinnati—were spotted about 30 nautical miles off the shoal, an atoll in the middle of the South China Sea claimed by both China and the Philippines, according to Manila’s coast guard.
Earlier on Aug. 13, the Chinese military claimed that it had “driven away” the USS Higgins, accusing the U.S. guided missile destroyer of entering the country’s territorial waters without the regime’s permission, the PLA’s Southern Theater Command said in a statement.
The U.S. Navy rebutted Beijing’s narratives, stating that its ship was asserting navigational rights and freedoms in line with international law.
“China’s statement about this mission is false,” the U.S. Seventh Fleet said in a written response to The Epoch Times. “The United States is defending its right to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows, as USS Higgins did here. Nothing China says otherwise will deter us.”
On Aug. 13, the Philippine Coast Guard reported four China Coast Guard vessels, alongside two PLA Navy vessels and six Chinese maritime militia boats near the shoal.
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Tarriela told reporters at the same briefing that a Philippine Coast Guard aircraft was intercepted by a Chinese J-15 fighter jet while patrolling the area. The Chinese military aircraft tracked the Philippine aircraft for over 20 minutes, and at one point, passed directly overhead at 200 feet, he added.
Manila believed there may have been injuries as a result of the collision. According to Tarriela, before the incident, at least four personnel were on the deck of the Chinese Coast Guard ship, but they couldn’t be seen after the collision.
“This is actually the reason why we offered to help them in conducting search and rescue, and we also presumed they were badly injured. That’s why we even offered medical assistance,” Tarriela told reporters on Aug. 13.
He described the incident as “a learning experience” for Beijing.
“For so many years, we have been reminding them to stop dangerous maneuvers, to stop risky blockings, to adhere to the collision regulations, because if there is a very high chance of miscalculation, this kind of collision incident would happen.”
China remained silent on the incident. The country’s coast guard confirmed the encounter in an Aug. 11 statement, but it didn’t mention the collision.
