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After Diplomatic Dustup, China Coast Guard Rams a Philippine Patrol Vessel

Palawan
Courtesy PCG

Published Sep 20, 2026 6:26 PM by The Maritime Executive

Preceding the recent Chinese Coast Guard attempt to ram the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources vessel BRP Datu Magat Salamat off Palawan on September 18, China attempted to silence the Defense Secretary of the Philippines as he was midway through giving a speech at the Defense Dialogue conference in Seoul on September 8. Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Jr. was halfway through a speech discussing the 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, which found that Beijing’s claims to historic rights within the Nine-Dash Line in the South China Sea had no legal basis under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). 

China has rejected the ruling, although it quoted UNCLOS in its criticism of the Philippines following the BRP Datu Magat Salamat incident off Palawan (below).

The note from the military attaché based at the Chinese embassy in Seoul instructed Secretary Gilberto to stop speaking. Secretary Teodoro instead carried on, and read the text of the Chinese message to his audience, saying that "this is actual coercion, bullying and aggression."

Secretary Teodoro speech was greeted with enthusiasm by the audience in Seoul, and has prompted calls for him back home to stand in 2028 as President, Vice President or for a seat in the Senate. He has previously attracted the ire of China, and in June the Secretary, his wife and child were sanctioned by China, barred from travel to China or dealings with Chinese organizations.

The Filipino approach to its dispute with China over rival claims to disputed islands has not changed significantly in recent years, despite changes in political leadership. It remains a policy of restraint, bolstered by increases in deterrent spending on naval and maritime forces. The Philippine Navy commissioned its second Miguel Malvar Class frigate, BRP Diego Silang (FFG07) in December 2025, and hopes to order two more. Hyundai is building six offshore patrol vessels for the Philippine Navy, two of which are now completed and undergoing sea trials in South Korea. Japan is offering to transfer six Abukuma Class multi-role frigates to the Philippines, as well as additional Beechcraft TC-90 aircraft for maritime surveillance. Two 124-meter landing dock platforms are being built by Indonesian shipbuilder PT PA. All these enhancements are part of the Horizon 2 modernization program initiated by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in June 2018.

The Philippines is also reaching out to develop stronger relations with allies who are also impacted by China's Nine-Dash Line claims, including for the first time dialogue with Taiwan. The Philippines and Japan jointly conducting a live firing in May of a SSM-700K C-Star ground-launched anti-ship missile in a test off Luzon, and the US Marine Corps’ 12th Marine Littoral Regiment was deployed to fire MLRS and the Naval Strike Missile, all as part of Exercise Balikatan 26. The US-led exercise also saw participation from Australia, Canada, France and New Zealand.