Philippines vows to protect territory against China's 'dangerous' moves

The Philippines' defence minister has said that the country's armed forces will resist China's "dangerous and reckless behaviour" in territory claimed by Manila in the South China Sea.

"We will exert our utmost in order to fulfil our sworn mandate to protect our territorial integrity, sovereignty, and sovereign rights," Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said in a statement on Monday when China accused a Philippine resupply ship of causing a slight collision in the strategic waterway.

China's actions "are the true obstacles to peace and stability in the South China Sea," Teodoro said.

Manila and Beijing, which have overlapping claims in the South China Sea, on Monday, exchanged accusations over the collision during a Philippine resupply mission in the Second Thomas Shoal located within its 200-mile exclusive economic zone.

China's embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

China blames Manila

The Chinese coast guard said the Philippine craft “ignored China’s repeated solemn warnings … and dangerously approached a Chinese vessel in normal navigation in an unprofessional manner, resulting in a collision.”

“The Philippines is entirely responsible for this,” the coast guard said in its statement on the social media platform WeChat.

Meanwhile, the Philippine military called the Chinese coast guard’s report “deceptive and misleading,” and said it would “not discuss operational details on the legal humanitarian rotation and resupply mission at A Yungin Shoal, which is well within our exclusive economic zone.”

It used the Philippine name for the shoal, where Filipino navy personnel have transported food, medicine and other supplies to a long-grounded warship that has served as Manila’s territorial outpost.