South China Sea: Beijing keeps close eye on Philippine supply mission to Second Thomas Shoal
Chinese coastguard authorities have tracked another Philippine supply mission to a South China Sea shoal at the centre of confrontations between the two countries.
The China Coast Guard said on Saturday that it monitored a Philippine civilian boat that conducted a supply mission on Friday to a vessel grounded "illegally" at the Second Thomas Shoal.
"The China Coast Guard has been following, monitoring, and managing the whole process," the agency said.
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"The China Coast Guard continues to carry out law enforcement activities to safeguard our rights in waters under China's jurisdiction in accordance with the law."
The Armed Forces of the Philippines said on Friday it completed a "flawless" resupply mission to the Second Thomas Shoal.
Beijing and Manila both claim the disputed reef in the South China Sea, known as Renai Reef in China and Ayungin Shoal in the Philippines.
The incident comes after a heated exchange over a "special arrangement" that China claimed it made for an airdrop of supplies by the Philippines to the shoal on January 21, days after they agreed to lower tensions in a consultation in Shanghai.
The China Coast Guard said last weekend it temporarily allowed the Philippines to provide food and water to soldiers stationed at the BRP Sierra Madre, a vessel grounded in 1999 on the shoal to assert Manila's territorial claims.
China has often said it will allow the Philippines to transport supplies to the reef "out of humanitarian considerations" if the Philippines reports to China in advance and accepts China's on-site supervision.
On Monday, Manila rejected suggestions that Beijing had a "temporary special arrangement" with Manila to allow the deliveries, saying it had the right to supply its troops.
The Philippines has stepped up efforts to assert its claims over various disputed reefs in the South China Sea. Last month, it announced plans to upgrade facilities on nine land features in the disputed waters, including the Second Thomas Shoal.
The Philippine Congress also approved funding to build a "permanent structure" that could be used as a shelter for fishermen on the shoal.
At a Lunar New Year event in Manila on Friday, Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian called on Manila to meet Beijing "halfway" and put ties between the two countries back on the path of "healthy and stable" development.
"China and the Philippines are close neighbours separated by a strip of water. Maritime issues should be properly handled through friendly consultations, and maritime differences should not dominate the entire relationship between the two countries," Huang said.
This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2024 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
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