By Junex Doronio
MANILA — Mincing no words, Taiwan has assailed China following a new ramming incident within the Phippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) when a China Coast Guard (CCG) rammed the Philippine Coast Guard’s BRP Teresa Magbanua multiple times at Escoda Shoal.
In a statement on Saturday (31 August 2024), Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) declared that it joins the United States in condemning China’s “flagrant violation of international law.”
A CCG vessel, with bow number 5205, on Saturday afternoon rammed the PCG’s BRP Teresa Magbanua multiple times while loitering at Escoda Shoal, a strategic reef located just over 70 nautical miles from Palawan mainland and deep within the Philippines’ EEZ.
Taiwan underscored that such action by the CCG disregard for the rules-based order fuels escalation of regional instability.
“Neither the Philippines nor other nations should be threatened by the CCP’s reckless ambitions,” Taiwan’s MOFA stressed.
China ruled by only one party, the Communist Party, considers the democratically-run Taiwan as its renegade province and has long been planning to reclaim it, by force if necessary.
(iam/mnm)
