MANILA: The Philippine government on Monday accused Chinese ships of ramming and damaging its boats in the South China Sea during a confrontation in waters off the Second Thomas Shoal, home to a garrison of Filipino troops.
“The People’s Liberation Army-Navy, China Coast Guard and Chinese Maritime Militia vessels engaged in dangerous maneuvers, including ramming and towing,” Manila’s national task force on the West Philippine Sea said in a statement.
“Their actions put at risk the lives of our personnel and damaged our boats.”
The Second Thomas Shoal has seen an escalating number of confrontations between Chinese and Philippine ships in recent months.
These have often taken place during Philippine resupply missions to a garrison of Filipino troops on a grounded navy vessel, the Sierra Madre, aimed at asserting Manila’s claims to the reef.
The shoal lies about 200 kilometers (120 miles) from the western Philippine island of Palawan and more than 1,000 kilometers from China’s nearest major landmass, Hainan island.
The Chinese coast guard said early Monday a Philippine resupply ship in the area had “ignored many solemn warnings from the Chinese side” and that they “took control measures” against it “in accordance with the law.”
It “approached the... Chinese vessel in an unprofessional way, resulting in a collision,” Beijing said.
Manila’s Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro vowed that Chinese actions would be resisted by the Philippine military.
“We will exert our utmost in order to fulfill our sworn mandate to protect our territorial integrity, sovereignty, and sovereign rights,” Teodoro said.
The Philippine government statement did not say which boats were rammed and the extent of the damage.
Philippines says Chinese ships rammed, damaged its boats
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Philippines says Chinese ships rammed, damaged its boats
- Philippine military: ‘We will not dignify the deceptive and misleading claims of the China Coast Guard’
- China Coast Guard vessels have used water cannon against Philippine boats multiple times in the contested waters
Trump discussing how to acquire Greenland; US military always an option, White House says
- Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States
- Strong statements in support of Greenland from NATO leaders have not deterred Trump
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump and his team are discussing options for acquiring Greenland and the use of the US military in furtherance of the goal is “always an option,” the White House said on Tuesday.
Trump’s ambition of acquiring Greenland as a strategic US hub in the Arctic, where there is growing interest from Russia and China, has been revived in recent days in the wake of the US arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States.
The White House said in a statement in response to queries from Reuters that Trump sees acquiring Greenland as a US national security priority necessary to “deter our adversaries in the Arctic region.”
“The president and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the US military is always an option at the commander-in-chief’s disposal,” the White House said.
A senior US official said discussions about ways to acquire Greenland are active in the Oval Office and that advisers are discussing a variety of options.
Strong statements in support of Greenland from NATO leaders have not deterred Trump, the official said.
“It’s not going away,” the official said about the president’s drive to acquire Greenland during his remaining three years in office.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said options include the outright US purchase of Greenland or forming a Compact of Free Association with the territory. A COFA agreement would stop short of Trump’s ambition to make the island of 57,000 people a part of the US.
A potential purchase price was not provided.
“Diplomacy is always the president’s first option with anything, and dealmaking. He loves deals. So if a good deal can be struck to acquire Greenland, that would definitely be his first instinct,” the official said.
Administration officials argue the island is crucial to the US due to its deposits of minerals with important high-tech and military applications. These resources remain untapped due to labor shortages, scarce infrastructure and other challenges.
Leaders from major European powers and Canada rallied behind Greenland on Tuesday, saying the Arctic island belongs to its people.
