U.S. condemns China's 'dangerous and aggressive' acts after Philippine sailor injured at disputed shoal
condemned what it termed China's "dangerous and aggressive" actions against Philippine navy personnel in the contested South China Sea waters, after...
Key points
- condemned what it termed China's "dangerous and aggressive" actions against Philippine navy personnel in the contested South China Sea waters, after Manila said a Chinese coast guard officer repeatedly struck a Filipino sailor on the head with a wooden baton, injuring him and damaging a navy rubber boat.
- Tensions in the South China Sea are expected to feature prominently in the discussions, with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also in attendance.
- The shoal is one of the most volatile flashpoints in the South China Sea, where Beijing claims almost the entire waterway despite a 2016 arbitral ruling that found those claims have no basis in international law.
- "We stand with our Ally, the Philippines," State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement Monday, calling on Beijing to "immediately cease its destabilizing conduct" and reaffirming the 2016 arbitral ruling that found China's expansive South China Sea claims have no basis in international law.
What happened
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condemned what it termed China's "dangerous and aggressive" actions against Philippine navy personnel in the contested South China Sea waters, after Manila said a Chinese coast guard officer repeatedly struck a Filipino sailor on the head with a wooden baton, injuring him and damaging a navy rubber boat. Tensions in the South China Sea are expected to feature prominently in the discussions, with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also in attendance. The shoal is one of the most volatile flashpoints in the South China Sea, where Beijing claims almost the entire waterway despite a 2016 arbitral ruling that found those claims have no basis in international law. "We stand with our Ally, the Philippines," State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement Monday, calling on Beijing to "immediately cease its destabilizing conduct" and reaffirming the 2016 arbitral ruling that found China's expansive South China Sea claims have no basis in international law. Beijing has disputed that account with the China Coast Guard claiming Philippine dinghies launched "illegally" from the Sierra Madre, ignored repeated warnings, and rammed its patrol vessel, and that Filipino personnel...