The Philippines withdrew a coast guard ship previously anchored in a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, officials said on Sunday, following a diplomatic standoff over the area also claimed by China.
The 97-meter Teresa Magbanua, which is one of the Philippines’ two largest coast guard ships acquired from Japan, had sailed back to port after five months of patrolling around Sabina, a shoal within the Philippine exclusive economic zone where China is accused of carrying out illegal reclamation activities.
Lucas Bersamin, executive secretary to Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., said the “repositioning” of the ship would allow for repairs and medical attention needed by its crew, who endured “diminished daily provisions.”
A crew member of a Philippine Coast Guard ship is carried on a stretcher after returning to port in Palawan, a western island facing the South China Sea, on Sept. 15, 2024. (Photo courtesy of the Philippine Coast Guard)(Kyodo)
In late August, the Teresa Magbanua collided with a China Coast Guard vessel, which created a hole in the Philippine ship. China has also prevented Philippine vessels from delivering supplies to it.
The China Coast Guard, in a statement issued Sunday, accused the Philippines of violating China’s territorial sovereignty when it “illegally stranded” the Teresa Magbanua in April, until the ship left the shoal on Saturday afternoon.
In July, China and the Philippines reached a temporary agreement to ease tensions at Second Thomas Shoal, another marine feature in the South China Sea where skirmishes between Chinese and Philippine vessels had increased since last year.
But the tension shifted to Sabina Shoal in August following incidents including the collision involving the Teresa Magbanua.
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