In a fateful twist, two Chinese ships shadowing the Philippine Coast Guard’s BRP Suluan collided with each other yesterday.

A Chinese People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLA-N) warship rammed a China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel approximately 10.5 nautical miles east of Panatag Shoal (Bajo de Masinloc), while harassing the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessel that was unscathed.

Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea (WPS), said the collision caused significant damage to the CCG vessel’s forecastle, rendering it not seaworthy.

“Philippine vessels and fishermen encountered hazardous maneuvers and blocking actions from other vessels in the vicinity. In particular, the MRRV or multi-role response vessel 4406 was targeted with a water cannon, but the seamanship skills of the PCG crew members allowed the vessel to successfully avoid getting hit,” Tarriela told reporters Monday.

In a virtual press conference, Tarriela said the PCG immediately extended support, offering assistance in man-overboard recovery and medical aid to any injured CCG personnel.

The CCG, however, did not respond to the offer.

“They did not respond to any of our radio communications,” Tarriela said.

The CCG 3104, while aggressively pursuing the Suluan at high speed, executed a dangerous maneuver from the starboard quarter of the PCG vessel.

Meanwhile, the MRRV 9701 safely escorted the Filipino fishermen to a secure location, where they received essential fuel and supplies.

Tarriela reiterated that the PCG remains committed to ensuring the safety of all maritime activities in the region and extends its hope for the swift recovery and proper care of the affected CCG personnel.

We will not be subdued

Amid the incident, the Department of National Defense (DND) emphasized the Philippines’ firm stance in defending its sovereignty and standing up against foreign intimidation.

“The DND stands in solidarity with the Philippine Coast Guard in the face of atrocious and inane Chinese behavior in the West Philippine Sea. Hindi tayo pasisiil (we will not be subdued),” it said in a statement.

After China accused President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of “playing with fire” after he said the Philippines would be affected if the United States and China engaged in a military conflict over Taiwan, Marcos indicated he was just stating the facts.

“I think if there is a war over Taiwan, we will be drawn in, we will be dragged in whether we like it or not. Kicking and screaming, we will be drawn and dragged into that mess,” he said.

Marcos stressed that hoping is not a plan and a country needs to be ready.

“That’s what I was talking about. How do we get our people out? How do we protect the, in case there’s conflict, war and we’re close. What should we do?” he said.

Marcos thought that his remarks were the cause of the increased activities in the West Philippine Sea.

Defending territory utmost

The President said the territorial dispute will not be solved with a silver bullet.

“There’s no silver bullet that once you hit the trigger, all of the problems will be solved,” he said.

“What will happen here is we will continue to be present. We will continue to defend our territory. We will continue to exercise our sovereign rights. And despite any opposition from anyone, we will continue to do that as we have done in the past three years,” he stressed.

Marcos underscored that the Philippines has no interest in joining any conflict but stands ready to defend its territory, which pushed the country to modernize its Armed Forces.

“That’s just our job. That’s all we’ll do. We have no interest in letting anyone in, in going to anyone, in rushing anyone. We have no interest in that,” he said.

Marcos noted that the funds allocated to defense and security could have been used on other things such as agriculture, housing or jobs creation.

“But we have to do this because we are under threat. We are forced to do this. We do not want to do this; we are forced to do this,” he said.

WPS ‘karma’

Following the Chinese ships’ collision, senators called the incident “karma” for China and called for a stop to the aggression at sea.

“This is a classic case of reaping what one sows. The China Coast Guard must cease engaging in dangerous maneuvers against our PCG and other maritime vessels,” Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada said.

Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva said the latest incident only showed the perils that the country’s troops face in asserting our rightful jurisdiction in the contested waters.

“We’re grateful that despite the harassment, our Coast Guard personnel are safe and able to continue their duty of patrolling our territorial waters. We reiterate to the China Coast Guard and fishing militia: your continued presence and operation in the West Philippine Sea is illegal and unauthorized. The West Philippine Sea is ours. Get out of Philippine waters,” he said.