Manila, en.SERU.co.id – Tensions between the Philippines and China escalated sharply on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, after a physical confrontation at Second Thomas Shoal (known locally as Ayungin Shoal) left a Filipino sailor injured, prompting both countries to summon each other’s ambassadors in a rare diplomatic exchange.
The incident unfolded on Monday morning, July 20, 2026, near the BRP Sierra Madre, a grounded Philippine naval vessel that serves as a makeshift outpost in the contested waters. According to Philippine officials, two rubber boats were conducting a routine resupply mission when Chinese Coast Guard personnel approached aggressively and struck a Filipino sailor on the head with a wooden baton. One Philippine boat was also damaged in the clash.
“The Chinese personnel reacted violently and aggressively, hitting a member of the Philippine Navy on the head with a wooden baton, causing injury,” said the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) in a strongly worded statement.
China firmly rejected the accusations, claiming Philippine vessels initiated the confrontation by ramming a Chinese patrol boat and attacking its officers with paddles and poles.
“The Philippine side provoked the incident first, yet has turned around and made counter-accusations, distorted the facts, and engaged in malicious hype,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
In a separate update, the China Coast Guard said it allowed the injured Filipino sailor to be evacuated via small boat on humanitarian grounds while continuing its “rights protection and law enforcement operations” in the area.
Diplomatic Fallout
In response, China summoned the Philippine ambassador in Beijing on Tuesday to lodge a formal protest. Hours later, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered China’s Ambassador to the Philippines, Jing Quan, to Malacañang Palace for a meeting, the first such direct summons by Marcos since Jing took office.
The Philippine military dismissed Beijing’s version of events as “false and misleading,” insisting its personnel acted calmly and did not initiate any violence.
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The clash comes just days before high-level ASEAN foreign ministers’ meetings in Manila, where China’s top diplomat Wang Yi is expected to attend, adding another layer of diplomatic sensitivity to the already fraught relationship.
Second Thomas Shoal has long been one of the most sensitive flashpoints in the South China Sea, with repeated confrontations between Chinese and Philippine vessels in recent years.
As of Tuesday evening, neither side had shown signs of immediate military escalation, although diplomatic tensions remained high.
