One of things that the government of China likes to do in the South China Sea, which it regards as its backyard lake, is almost-ram the vessels of other countries that claim rights to various parts of this sea—like the parts close to their country.
In later April 2023, France 24 reported that a “Chinese coast guard ship cut off a Philippine patrol vessel carrying journalists in the disputed South China Sea, causing a near-collision.” Reporters on board another vessel witnessed the incident.
“We would have collided on the bow had I not cut the engine and thrown it in reverse,” Malapascua commanding officer Rodel Hernandez told reporters of Sunday’s close call, describing it as an encounter between “David and Goliath”.
The incident happened after the Philippine coast guard boats approached Second Thomas Shoal, where Philippine marines are stationed in a run-down navy ship grounded to assert Manila’s territorial claim in the waters.
As the 44-metre (144-feet) Malapascua neared the shoal, a Chinese Coast Guard vessel more than twice its size sailed into its path….
Hernandez said Chinese boats routinely blocked his and other Philippine coast guard ships during their patrols near the shoal.
Second Thomas Shoal is about 200 kilometers from the nearest Philippine island and about a thousand kilometers from the nearest Chinese land mass.
The goal of such intimidatory gestures is to bully other countries in the area into acceding to Chinese territorial demands regardless of any international adjudication or findings.
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