China issued a stern warning to the United States on Tuesday, stating that it has “no right to intervene” in its maritime disputes with the Philippines, following another confrontation near a contested reef in the South China Sea.
Over the past year, China and the Philippines have repeatedly clashed in these waters, including near a warship that Manila intentionally grounded in 1999 on the disputed Second Thomas Shoal, where a Philippine garrison is stationed.
On Monday, both nations confirmed that their coast guard ships collided near the contested Sabina Shoal, located 140 kilometers (86 miles) west of the Philippine island of Palawan and approximately 1,200 kilometers from China’s nearest landmass, Hainan island.
Despite an international tribunal ruling that China’s extensive claims in the South China Sea have no legal basis, Beijing continues to assert its control over almost the entire area.
The United States condemned the latest incident, criticizing China’s “dangerous actions” against what it described as “lawful Philippine maritime operations.” State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said these actions are “the latest examples of China using dangerous and escalatory measures to enforce its expansive and unlawful South China Sea maritime claims.”
When asked about the U.S. response, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning defended Beijing’s actions, describing them as “legal measures to safeguard its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests.”
“The US is not a party in the South China Sea and has no right to intervene in maritime disputes between China and the Philippines,” Mao stated during a regular briefing.
Mao further urged the U.S. to “stop provoking confrontation in the South China Sea, not disrupt regional stability, and not escalate tensions.”
Analysts suggest that Beijing’s strategy involves pushing eastward from the Second Thomas Shoal toward the neighboring Sabina Shoal in the Spratly Islands, thereby encroaching on the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone and gradually normalizing Chinese control over the area.
These recent confrontations mirror the events of 2012, when China took control of Scarborough Shoal, another strategically significant feature in the South China Sea that is closest to the Philippines.