The Philippines denounced the crew of a Chinese fishing boat that collided with a Philippine ship and then left 22 Filipino fishermen abandoned in the South China Sea. According to the Filipino defense ministry, the collision occurred on June 9, near the Reed Bank.
After the collision, a Vietnamese fishing boat rescued all the fishermen. Commenting on the incident, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the the government denounces the actions of the Chinese fishing vessel for leaving the incident area and abandoning the 22 Filipino crewmen.
However, as Reuters reported, it could not independently verify the Philippine account of the collision.
Moreover, a Chinese foreign ministry characterized the incident as an ordinary maritime accident and added there is no need to politicize it. Nevertheless, China will investigate the incident.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, and has received accusations that it used thousands of fishing boats as an extension of its foreign policy.
As for the Reed Bank, it includes offshore gas reserves that both countries claim, despite it being within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone.
Despite their disagreement however, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has attempted to warm relations with China, in exchange for billions of pledged loans and investment.
