Article informationAuthor, Jonathan HeadRole, South East Asia CorrespondentReporting from the South China Sea6 hours agoWe may see the bigger Chinese language send shifting nearer, each our ships going at top pace. The Chinese language group had been shut sufficient for us to peer their faces. Two of them filmed us, as we filmed them.The BBC was once onboard the Philippines coast guard vessel BRP Bagacay when it was once accosted by way of Chinese language vessels on Tuesday.Filipino crews raced to hold yellow foam limitations over the aspect, getting ready for a collision. Abruptly the Chinese language send made a pointy flip throughout our bow, forcing the Filipino captain to decelerate rapidly. The 2 vessels had been not up to 5 metres aside.We had been racing in opposition to Scarborough Shoal, a tiny coral atoll 220km (137 miles) west of the Philippines coast, but additionally claimed by way of China.Symbol caption, Chinese language coast guard officials filmed a BBC crewThe Chinese language ships had been made up our minds to forestall us, and there have been numerous them – at one level of time there have been 10 of them from the coast guard and maritime armed forces. The Filipino captain relied at the pace and manoeuvrability of his Jap-made send to outrun the Chinese language, and were given to inside of 600m of the shoal, the nearest but, he advised us.However there was once a brand new barrier put in not too long ago by way of the Chinese language, simply visual below the water. Their ships had been proper in the back of us, two positioning themselves on both sides of the Filipino send, at which level they started firing their tough water cannon. We had been rushed within, from the place shall we pay attention the jets of water thundering in opposition to the steel partitions of the send. They smashed the awning within the stern, and mangled a railing on one aspect. The second one send in our convoy, sporting provides for Filipino fishermen, was once extra badly broken, after taking 10 direct hits from the water cannon.This sport of maritime cat-and-mouse is not anything new within the South China Sea. However those encounters have develop into extra common, and extra critical, since President Bongbong Marcos permitted the coastguard to problem the Chinese language presence in disputed spaces way more robustly than prior to now.Symbol caption, A number of Chinese language coast guard vessels tailed the boat“The Chinese language govt has at all times mentioned there’s a crimson line”, mentioned Commodore Jay Tarriela, the coast guard spokesman for the West Philippines Sea, the Filipino title for the spaces it claims. “They mentioned shall we now not go the 12 nautical mile restrict from the shoal. However below this management now we have already damaged that crimson line, to turn that China isn’t respecting global regulation.”The project we had been on is part of that more potent reaction. Formally its objective was once to provide meals and gasoline to the Filipino fishermen who’ve labored on Scarborough Shoal for many years, however who’ve complained of continuing harassment for the reason that Chinese language coast guard took keep watch over of it in 2012.It was once additionally to exhibit the decision of the Philippines to press its declare to the shoal, which lies throughout the nation’s legally-recognised unique financial zone, and is far as regards to the Philippines than to China.A global court docket ruling in 2016 mentioned primary components of China’s claims within the South China Sea —comparable to its nine-dash line together with a lot of actions in Philippine waters—had been illegal. China says it does now not recognise the ruling.Symbol caption, Filipino coast guard officials saved tabs at the Chinese language vesselsThe numbers of Chinese language ships visual across the shoal had been intimidating. Lets see them in each route, massively outnumbering the rest that the Philippines can deploy. “We’re David to their Goliath,” mentioned Commodore Tarriela.It’s tricky to peer the place this new coverage of President Marcos will lead, although he has been given sturdy backing by way of US President Joe Biden, and has scaled up a long-term modernisation programme for the militia.The Chinese language ships had been obviously professional of their ways, dangerous although they had been. They may be able to most probably handle their blockade virtually indefinitely.After our come upon with their vessels, China put out a observation that it had effectively pushed out the Filipino ships, which it accused of getting into its territorial waters.It’s true that the BRP Bagacay did pull again from Scarborough Shoal after being battered by way of water cannon from two aspects. The second one vessel, with the provides and with a lot of its digital apparatus broken, was once nonetheless hemmed in by way of Chinese language ships extra 20km in the back of us, so our send returned to lend a hand it. However each ships stayed at sea, out of doors China’s “crimson line” however nonetheless neatly inside of its notorious “nine-dash line”, delineating its expansive declare to nearly all of the South China Sea.By means of morning dozens of fishing boats had been accumulated round us to obtain their help. From a distance a Chinese language coast guard send saved watch. With what they see as China’s bullying ways as soon as once more uncovered, the Philippines coastguard perspectives this project as effectively achieved.Symbol caption, Fishermen approached the boat to obtain help from the Philippine coast guard
