China Coast Guard Cutter Nearly Hits Philippine Patrol Vessel Head-On
On Sunday, the crew of the Philippine Coast Guard cutter BRP Cabra narrowly averted a head-on collision with an aggressive China Coast Guard cutter, according to the PCG.
On Saturday, BRP Cabra intercepted the China Coast Guard cutter CCG-3302 at a position about 85 nautical miles off the coast of Luzon. CCG-3302 is the latest in a string of Chinese government vessels that have been dispatched to patrol the Philippines' coastal waters, asserting Chinese law enforcement jurisdiction in an area about 500 nautical miles from mainland China. Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea as its own, including large sections of its neighbors' exclusive economic zones.
"The 44-meter BRP Cabra boldly confronted the larger 99-meter CCG vessel, asserting its rightful presence within the Philippine Exclusive Economic Zone," the PCG said in a statement Saturday.
On Sunday, PCG spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela said that the CCG-3302 had engaged in "reckless and dangerous maneuvers," and nearly carried out a head-on collision with BRP Cabra. Only the skill of the PCG crew prevented a collision, he said.
After the encounter, CCG-3302 retreated further from Luzon's shores by about 10 nautical miles, according to Tarriela. It continues its "illegal patrol," he said, and BRP Cabra remains on scene to monitor it. The pushback is intended to prevent the "normalization of unlawful activities" by the Chinese government in the Philippine EEZ.
Tensions between the Philippines and China are running higher than usual, and not just in the South China Sea. Philippine police forces have arrested 18 Chinese nationals in four separate busts since the start of the year on espionage charges, including five who were detained for allegedly spying on U.S. Navy vessels in Subic Bay.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines has also advised its forces to be prepared for the possibility of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. If this occurred, AFP troops would be needed for an evacuation of Philippine overseas workers: an estimated 250,000 Filipinos are employed in the Taiwanese economy, and would have to be brought back to safety across the Strait of Luzon.