A Filipino sailor was seriously injured in a collision with the Chinese Coast Guard

The Philippine Army announced on Tuesday that one of its sailors was seriously injured in a collision that occurred the previous day between his boat and a Chinese Coast Guard ship in the South China Sea.

• Read also: A new incident between two Chinese and Filipino ships in the South China Sea

• Read also: Beijing allows detention of foreigners in the South China Sea

“A Philippine Navy member was seriously injured after an intentional high-speed collision” caused by the Chinese Coast Guard “during a rotation and resupply mission,” the military said in a statement.

Thomas Shoal Atoll II has been the scene of an increasing number of encounters between Chinese and Filipino ships in recent months.

The Philippine military added that “the sailor was evacuated safely and received rapid medical treatment,” without providing further details about his injury.

These incidents often occurred during resupply missions undertaken by the Philippines for the military on BRP Sierra Madre, a warship deliberately stranded on the atoll with the aim of making it an outpost and asserting its sovereignty claims against China.

Second Thomas Atoll is about 200 kilometers from the Philippine island of Palawan and more than 1,000 kilometers from the nearest large Chinese island, Hainan.

The Chinese Coast Guard said on Monday that a Philippine supply ship in the area “ignored several official warnings from China” and “took control measures” against it “in accordance with the law.”

Beijing confirmed that the boat “approached the Chinese ship (…) in an unprofessional manner, which led to its collision.”

The Philippine Army immediately denied the accusations, calling them “misleading and false.”

Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro pledged that the Philippine Army would resist Chinese measures.