CCG expels Philippine vessels illegally intruding into China’s Huangyan Dao

Manila and Beijing trade blame after water cannon clash near Scarborough Shoal

CNN was given exclusive access aboard a vessel belonging to the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, on a mission to resupply fuel for local fishermen near Scarborough Shoal, a sandbar claimed by both Beijing and Manila.

The PCG and BFAR were carrying out the Kadiwa para sa Bagong Mangingisda initiative of the government by delivering fuel subsidies and provisions to Filipino fishing boats as well as securing their safety and right to fish in traditional Philippine fishing grounds when the attack happened at about 6:26 a.m.

China claims virtually the entire sea passage, a key global trade route, despite a 2016 arbitration ruling based on the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea that invalidated Beijing’s expansive claims.