China urges Philippines to halt provocation after ship-ramming incident

BEIJING, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- The China Coast Guard (CCG) has warned Manila to immediately halt its infringements, provocations and inflammatory actions after a Philippine vessel intentionally rammed into a CCG ship in waters around China's Huangyan Dao on Wednesday.

"Otherwise, the Philippines will be held accountable for all consequences arising from this," CCG spokesperson Liu Dejun said.

During the incident, the Philippine official vessel 3003 ignored multiple stern warnings from China, made a sharp turn, reversed and deliberately rammed into the CCG vessel 3302, severely threatening the safety of CCG ships, Liu said.

The Philippine side, acting provocatively, was the party at fault, the spokesperson added.

On Wednesday, the Philippines deployed coast guard vessels, official ships and fishing boats to intrude into Chinese territorial waters around Huangyan Dao. The CCG responded by enforcing control in accordance with the law and regulations.

The Philippine side, under the pretext of protecting fishing activities, has actually engaged in infringement and provocation. Afterwards, they distorted the facts and attempted to mislead international perception, Liu said.