China ‘expels' US destroyer after South China Sea stand-off
The USS Higgins was sailing with a smaller combat ship, the USS Cincinnati, near the Scarborough Shoal, a group of atolls off the coast of the Philippines where two Chinese warships collided while chasing a Philippine vessel earlier in the week.
Beijing claims nearly all of the South China Sea as falling under its sovereignty for historical reasons, something disputed not only by the Philippines but other countries that border it.
'The US move seriously violated China's sovereignty and security, severely undermined peace and stability in the South China Sea,' the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) southern command said.
Scarborough Shoal, known as Bajo de Masinloc in the Philippines and Huangyan Dao to the Chinese, is one of a number of regular flashpoints in the region.
Clashes have become more common as the PLA attempts to 'break out' of Chinese coastal areas to establish itself as the dominant navy in the western Pacific. Asserting its disputed rights to islands, shoals and open sea is a key part of the strategy, which is fiercely resisted by the Philippines, a close US ally.
On Monday, the Philippine coastguard released a video it said showed Chinese vessels chasing and firing water cannon at one of its own ships, which was protecting fishermen in the area. They then collided with each other.
China said it took measures 'in accordance with international law' to drive the Philippine ship away, but made no mention of the collision. It insists it will try to block all Philippine naval activity in the area.
• US threats to Aukus pact put united front against China at risk
The Trump administration has given mixed signals over the strength of its commitment to the protection of allies in the Pacific as China increasingly flexes its muscles, particularly over Taiwan. But the US navy itself has been hawkish about the threat from China, and actively attempts to assert free movement for its own and its allies' warships in the South China Sea.
'The United States is defending its right to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows, as USS Higgins did here,' it said. 'Nothing China says otherwise will deter us.'
The PLA claimed to have 'expelled' the Higgins, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, from the area.
The incident is the first of its type since 2022, when a PLA warship confronted a similar US destroyer, the USS Benfold, near the Paracels, another disputed island chain, and the first near the Scarborough Shoal for six years.
Later on Wednesday, a Chinese fighter jet buzzed a Philippine coastguard plane that was carrying journalists as it conducted a surveillance flight over the shoal.
• Trump extends deadline for higher tariffs on China by 90 days
Commodore Jay Tarriela, a Philippine coastguard spokesman, said the collision, in which one of the Chinese vessels appeared to be damaged, should be a 'learning experience' for Beijing.
'For so many years, we have been reminding them to stop dangerous manoeuvres, to stop risky blockings, to adhere to the collision regulations because if there is a very high chance of miscalculation, this kind of collision incident would happen,' he said.
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