Philippine supply ship reaches disputed shoal without incident a week after deal with China

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine government personnel transported food and other supplies Saturday to a fiercely disputed shoal occupied by a Filipino navy contingent but closely guarded by Beijing’s forces in the South China Sea and no confrontations were reported, Philippine officials said.

It was the first Philippine government supply trip to the Second Thomas Shoal, which has been the scene of increasingly violent confrontations between Chinese and Philippine forces, since the Philippines and China reached a deal a week ago to prevent clashes, the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said in a statement.

“The lawful and routine rotation and resupply mission within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone is a credit to the professionalism of the men and women of the Philippine navy and the Philippine coast guard and the close coordination among the National Security Council, Department of National Defense and the Department of Foreign Affairs,” the Philippine Foreign Affairs Department said, without providing other details.

A top Philippine security official told The Associated Press that the Chinese and Philippine coast guards communicated for coordination Saturday, and their ships did not issue two-way radio challenges like in the past to demand that each other’s ships leave the shoal immediately.

Also, for the first time at the shoal, Chinese coast guard ships did not shadow or block the Philippine vessels as they had repeatedly done in the past, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of a lack of authorization to discuss the delicate issue publicly.

China’s coast guard said the Philippine ship delivered daily necessities “in accordance with a temporary arrangement reached between China and the Philippines.”

“The China Coast Guard confirmed it, supervised and managed the entire process,” spokesperson Gan Yu said in a statement posted online.

The deal was reached by the Philippines and China after a series of meetings between the two country’s diplomats in Manila and exchanges of diplomatic notes aimed to establish a mutually acceptable arrangement at the shoal — which Filipinos call Ayungin and the Chinese call Ren’ai Jiao —