Chinese warship aims ‘military grade’ laser at Filipino coast guards

The Philippines accused a Chinese coast guard ship on Monday of hitting a Philippine coast guard ship with a military-grade laser.

Manila said the laser temporarily blinded some of its crew in the disputed South China Sea, calling it a “blatant” violation of Manila’s sovereign rights.

The Chinese ship also maneuvered dangerously close, at about 450 feet, to prevent the Philippine patrol vessel BRP Malapascua from approaching Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef that has been occupied by Philippine forces, on February 6, the Philippine coast guard said. it’s a statement. .

The Philippines has filed nearly 200 diplomatic protests against China’s aggressive actions in the disputed waters in 2022 alone.

The incident comes amid heightened tensions between the United States, an ally of the Philippines, and China. Earlier this month, Washington reached an agreement with Manila to secure access to four additional military bases in the Philippines, days before a US warplane shot down a Chinese spy balloon that had flown over US airspace.

Tensions have also risen in recent months and years over China’s plans to launch an invasion of Taiwan, which it considers its own, in the coming years. The United States has said its forces would defend the island in the event of an invasion.

China claims the South China Sea virtually in its entirety, putting it on a collision course with other claimants.

Despite friendly overtures to Beijing by former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and his successor Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing in January, tensions persisted, prompting a closer military alliance. between the Philippines and the US

Although the Chinese coast guard had tried to blockade Philippine coast guard ships in disputed waters before, this was the first time it had used lasers and caused physical suffering among Philippine personnel, the coast guard spokesman told The Associated Press. Philippine, Commodore Armand Balilo.

“The Chinese ship shone the green laser light twice towards the BRP Malapascua, temporarily blinding its crew on the bridge,” a Philippine statement said.

There was no immediate comment from the Chinese embassy in Manila.

Images provided by the PCG showed a green light emanating from a Chinese ship with bow number 5205.

The Philippine vessel was forced to move away from the area, where it was escorting a supply ship delivering food and sailors to a Philippine navy sentry ship, the BRP Sierra Madre, which has been isolated at Second Thomas Shoal since 1999, off the coast . said the guard.

The 330-foot World War II ship was intentionally beached on the shoal, known locally as Ayungin, in 1999 to bolster Manila’s claims to sovereignty in the Spratly archipelago.

“The deliberate blockade of Philippine government ships to deliver food and supplies to our military personnel aboard the BRP Sierra Madre is flagrant disregard and a clear violation of the sovereign rights of the Philippines in this part of the West Philippine Sea,” it said. the coast guard said, using the name the Philippines has adopted for the stretch of waters off its western coast.

It was not immediately clear if the Philippine resupply mission went ahead despite the incident.

The Chinese coast guard also prevented Philippine ships escorting a supply ship from approaching Second Thomas Shoal in August, the coast guard said.

At that time, one of the two Chinese ships joined by two Chinese civilian ships removed the cover on its 70mm gun, the coast guard said, adding that it would not be deterred by China’s aggression to protect sovereignty. Philippine in disputed sea.

Aside from China and the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei also have overlapping claims to the active, resource-rich waterway, where most of the world’s trade and oil transit.

The United States does not claim the disputed sea, but has deployed forces to patrol the waters to promote freedom of navigation and overflight, moves that angered Beijing, which has warned Washington to stop meddling in what it says is a purely Asian dispute.

The US Navy and Marine Corps conducted joint exercises in the South China Sea over the weekend at a time of heightened tension with Beijing over the downing of a suspected Chinese spy balloon.

The United States has been taking steps to rebuild its military might in the Philippines more than 30 years after closing its major bases in the country and reinforcing an arc of military alliances in Asia.

It is not the first time that China has been accused of using lasers in the region.

In February last year, Australia accused Beijing of an “act of intimidation” after a Chinese navy ship directed a laser at an Australian military surveillance plane.

The reported offer to block the Philippine resupply mission comes as Marcos has expressed his willingness to forge a Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with Japan to boost maritime security.

Marcos visited Japan last week to forge closer security ties with Tokyo, which in December announced its biggest military buildup since World War II, fueled by concerns about aggressive Chinese moves in the region.

The Philippine president also recently granted the United States access to additional military bases in the Philippines under a VFA, a move China says undermined regional stability and heightened tensions. The VFA provides rules for the rotation of thousands of US troops in and out of the Philippines for exercises.