At a Sept. 24 afternoon regular briefing, Ministry of Defense spokesman Jiang
Bin said a China Coast Guard vessel Sanzhou'ao was conducting lawful
rights-protection law-enforcement operations near Xianbin Reef in the Nansha
(Spratly) Islands when Philippine government vessel 3015 ignored repeated
warnings, altered course and accelerated to cut across the CCG ship’s bow,
causing a scrape. The ministry said evidence is clear, called the Philippine
manoeuvre a deliberate, dangerous provocation that endangered Chinese personnel
and vessels and breached international law and basic norms, and accused the
Philippines of spreading a false victim narrative. China said it will continue
to take effective measures to firmly defend territorial sovereignty and maritime
rights and to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea.
