China’s Increasing Aggression in the West Philippine Sea
The protest comes after one of the Philippines’ contracted boats on a resupply mission to the Ayungin Shoal was blocked by a Chinese Coast Guard vessel, resulting in a collision.
During the same mission, a Philippine Coast Guard vessel’s port side was also “bumped by Chinese Maritime Militia vessel while it was lying to approximately 6.4 nautical miles northeast of Ayungin Shoal.
The Chinese Coast Guard meanwhile promptly released a statement on Sunday saying the Philippine vessels made an “unauthorized entry” “deliberately stirred up trouble” by reversing and colliding with a Chinese fishing vessel, which was floating in the vicinity.
We’ll talk about this latest incident in the West Philippine Sea and it’s larger implication in the geopolitical scene in Southeast Asia with maritime security expert Ray Powell, Director of SeaLight and Project Lead for Project Myoushu at Stanford University’s Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation.