Chinese Warships Cut Off Philippine Navy Vessel Near Scarborough Shoal

China's gray-hull naval fleet has joined in the pattern of close-quarters encounters between Chinese and Philippine forces in the South China Sea. In years past, these run-ins were almost always carried out by China Coast Guard and Chinese maritime militia vessels, and the PLA Navy kept watch from a distance. In at least one recent encounter, however, Chinese warships got close enough to a Philippine Navy vessel to risk a collision, bringing a heightened risk of direct conflict.

On Monday, the Philippine corvette BRP Emilio Jacinto was operating with two other government vessels at a position about 12 nautical miles off of Scarborough Shoal, a contested reef within the Philippine EEZ that is occupied by China. It is a frequent flashpoint for confrontations between Chinese forces and Philippine interests, including fishermen from Luzon.

As Jacinto transited the area, PLA Navy frigate Liuzhou cut across her bow at close range, and frigate Tongliao held position less than a shiplength off Jacinto's port quarter. The maneuver occurred in open water, and appeared to be an act of interference or intimidation, according to the Armed Forces of the Philippines. No harm came to the ship or crew, and Jacinto continued on her mission.

“These reckless actions not only posed a direct threat to the safety of navigation of [Jacinto], but also violated the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs),” the AFP said in a statement.

China claims the western Philippine EEZ as its own under its "nine-dash line" policy, a claim invalidated by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague in 2016. In a statement, PLA Southern Theater Command spokesman Senior Colonel Tian Junli said that PLA forces had "forcefully and effectively stopped the incursion" of Philippine ships in the Philippine EEZ, and he reiterated China's claim that Scarborough Shoal is Chinese territory.