South China Sea: Second Thomas Shoal war of words heats up as Beijing gives ‘details’ of resupply deal with Manila
The China-Philippines war of words over whether an unwritten agreement was made for Manila to resupply its grounded warship in the disputed South China Sea has intensified, after Beijing offered details of the purported deal for the first time.
In a statement published on Saturday, the Chinese embassy in Manila gave some details of what it called “a new model for management” of the Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef that is part of the Spratly Islands chain also claimed by China as the Nansha Islands.
Called Renai Jiao by China, the shoal controlled by Manila has been at the centre of a series of recent stand-offs, with the Chinese coastguard accused of ramming and using water cannons on Philippine supply vessels.
“To de-escalate tensions in the South China Sea, the Chinese side and the Philippine side … agreed on a ‘new model’ for the management of the situation at Renai Jiao early this year after multiple rounds of discussion,” the embassy said.
It said the new model had been “approved by all key officials in the Philippine chain of command”, including Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and national security adviser Eduardo Ano, and records of the negotiations were kept by China “in every detail”.
The deal was also discussed at a meeting between Chinese ambassador Huang Xilian and Teodoro last July, “when the two sides exchanged views on military ties and maritime issues”, the embassy statement added.
China has often said it would allow the Philippines to send supplies to the shoal “out of humanitarian considerations”, but with advance notice and acceptance of on-site supervision by the Chinese side.
However it would not allow the delivery of construction materials to reinforce the BRP Sierra Madre, a US-built World War II-era ship that was deliberately grounded by Manila in 1999 and serves as an outpost for a handful of troops.
Manila has denied that it had ever agreed with Beijing to remove the ship, while China insists that the shoal must be returned to its “unoccupied state”.
“Thanks to the ‘new model’, frontliners of both sides had guidance to follow on how to interact with each other, which made the resupply mission on last February 2 a smooth one,” the Chinese embassy said on Saturday, citing an X post by the Armed Forces of the Philippines hailing the mission as “flawless”.
“Positive efforts of the frontliners in this regard are commendable,” the embassy said.
Beijing claims almost the whole of the strategically important and resource-rich South China Sea under what it calls its historical “nine-dash line”. Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei are also among the rival claimants.
China has long accused the Philippines of “violating its commitments” and “acting illegally” in the South China Sea. Saturday’s statement came as it ramped up the pressure on Manila, which has hardened its stance against Beijing over the maritime dispute.
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Philippines accuses Chinese coastguard of damaging its vessel in South China Sea
Philippines accuses Chinese coastguard of damaging its vessel in South China Sea
The latest flare-up in tensions came after Manila said one of its coastguard ships and a government boat were damaged by Chinese coastguard water cannons near the Scarborough Shoal, another disputed South China Sea feature controlled and claimed by Beijing as the Huangyan Island.
The Philippine foreign ministry on Thursday said it had summoned the deputy chief of the Chinese mission, Zhou Zhiyong, to protest the “dangerous manoeuvres, use of water cannons, and other aggressive actions” on April 30.
Hours later, the Chinese embassy published a series of articles on its website, claiming a “temporary special arrangement” was agreed during a visit to Beijing in 2016 by then Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte. This, it said, allowed fishing in designated waters around disputed South China Sea islands but restricted access by military, coastguard and other official aircraft and ships to the 12 nautical mile (22km) limit of territorial waters.
Philippine leaders and officials, including Duterte and his successor, President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, have denied agreeing on any such deal with China.
Australia, Japan, Philippines join US ‘Squad’ to tackle China in Indo-Pacific
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Addressing a media seminar on Monday, national security adviser Ano said that the so-called “new model” of conduct around the Second Thomas Shoal was “nothing more than a new invention”.
Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo has also rejected Beijing’s claims that the Philippines is being used as a “pawn” by the United States, a treaty ally.
The Philippines needs “to act to protect our interests and we need to act as cohesively as possible – by rejecting counternarratives that seek to distract us from our objectives,” Manalo was quoted as saying by the Manila Bulletin.
“[The Philippines] must expose the illegality of the nine-dash line that is being used as the basis for threatening the livelihoods of our fishermen through harassment and intimidation, and for reclamation activities that degrade the environment in these vital waters.”
