appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Kawala Xie

The Chinese navy said it expelled a Philippine warship that “illegally intruded” into the waters of a disputed shoal in the South China Sea on Sunday, hours before the start of Washington and Manila’s annual joint military drills.
The People’s Liberation Army Southern Theatre Command said on Sunday night that the BRP Apolinario Mabini, a Jacinto-class patrol vessel in the Philippine Navy, was challenged near Scarborough Shoal, which is claimed by Beijing and Manila, earlier that day.
The shoal, which is known as Huangyan Island in China and Panatag Shoal in the Philippines, has been in Beijing’s actual control since 2012.
Command spokesman Senior Colonel Zhao Zhiwei said the Philippine frigate “illegally entered China’s territorial waters of Huangyan Island” without the approval of the Chinese government.
“[We] organised forces to track, monitor, warn and expel [the vessel] in accordance with the law … we urge the Philippines to immediately stop its infringement and provocation, or it will bear all the consequences,” he said.




In response, a Philippine Navy spokesman reiterated Manila’s sovereignty claim, telling GMA News that Philippine forces “have the authority to challenge” any ship within its maritime zones.
The incident occurred on the eve of the first Balikatan – which means “shoulder to shoulder” – war games between the US and the Philippines since US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
The exercise is seen as a sign of Washington’s continuing defence commitment to its ally in the face of rising tensions with Beijing.
The three-week exercise, which involves an estimated 14,000 troops, fighter aircraft and navy vessels, along with a new US anti-ship missile system, started on Monday in the northwestern Philippines, which is close to the South China Sea and Taiwan.
Other US allies in the Indo-Pacific, including Australia and Japan, are also taking part in the drill, which will run through to May 9.


On Monday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun slammed the drill as “undermining regional stability and economic potential”.
Military commentator Song Zhongping, a former PLA instructor, said the deployment of the Chinese navy, rather than its coastguard, was not related to the timing of the US-Philippine joint drills.
Instead, it should be regarded as a “corresponding” response to the use of a Philippine military asset, he said. “[But] if the US-Philippines joint military exercises entered … our territorial waters and airspace, then we would need to respond.”
PLA Navy forces, including a Type 055 large destroyer, conducted frequent combat drills in the South China Sea at around the same time of last year’s US-Philippine drills, according to Chinese state media.
Also last year, there were media reports in the Philippines that a Chinese warship was shadowing US and Philippine vessels during their exercises.
China has long criticised US defence activities with its allies in Asia, saying that they provoke instability and are fuelling an arms race in the region.
The NMESIS anti-ship system’s deployment follows the US staging of its Typhon mid-range missile system in the northern Philippines in April last year that prompted strong opposition from Beijing.
During his first trip to Asia as US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth – a prominent hawk in Trump’s cabinet – said that such a deterrence was “necessary”, considering “the threats from the communist Chinese”.
Hegseth has also pledged an “ironclad” defence commitment to Manila amid its stand-off with Beijing in the South China Sea, which has seen frequent encounters in the contested waters – including coastguard clashes – since President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr came to power in 2022.


Paraguay’s president urges UN to let Taiwan in, calls island’s exclusion ‘a stain’

Why younger Filipinos are warming to China despite maritime tensions

Why Brunei prefers ‘quiet diplomacy’ over confrontation in South China Sea

Xi and Trump face their greatest challenge yet: building US-China trust

South China Sea

China, Philippines in Scarborough Shoal naval encounter ahead of US joint drills

An aerial view of the Chinese-controlled Scarborough Shoal taken in 2023 during a maritime surveillance flight by the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. Photo: AFP

China and Philippines trade accusations after tense Scarborough Shoal encounter

An image published by the Philippine coastguard on social media after the incident. Photo: X/ Philippine Coast Guard

Philippines, US launch ‘full battle’ Balikatan drills, some near Taiwan

US and Philippine soldiers salute on Monday during the opening ceremony of the Balikatan joint military drills. Photo: AFP

US troopers alight from a US Army helicopter during last year’s Balikatan joint military exercises. Photo: AP

Philippines Armed Forces Chief of Staff Romeo Brawner delivers a message during the Balikatan opening ceremony on Monday. Photo: Reuters

‘Surprising’ PLA helicopter joint sea drills signal evolving Taiwan strategy: experts

China’s state broadcaster has showcased pilots from the PLA’s 81st Group Army aviation brigade, as part of efforts to spotlight advances in China’s first dedicated armed helicopter force. Photo: Global Military Review

PLA ‘on high alert’ in South China Sea, warns Manila over naval drills with US, Japan

US, Philippine and Japanese navy vessels take part in a multilateral exercise “in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific” on March 28. Photo: X/ US7thFleet

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth (left) with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, in Manila on March 28. Photo: Kyodo

News

China

Diplomacy

Military

Sunday’s incident occurred the day before US-Philippine forces’ Balikatan exercise near South China Sea


Sunday’s incident occurred the day before US-Philippine forces’ Balikatan exercise near South China Sea.


The Philippines

United States

China, Philippines in Scarborough Shoal naval encounter ahead of US joint drills

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Sunday’s incident occurred the day before US-Philippine forces’ Balikatan exercise near South China Sea

Sunday’s incident occurred the day before US-Philippine forces’ Balikatan exercise near South China Sea