China Monitors Philippine Resupply at Disputed Shoal

China's coast guard said Tuesday it monitored a Philippine resupply mission to the BRP Sierra Madre at Second Thomas Shoal, a month after Chinese vessels forced an earlier supply run to abort.

The China Coast Guard said its personnel "inquired and verified the Philippine vessel conducting the delivery, and monitored the entire process." Beijing described the goods delivered as "living necessities" and reiterated that the BRP Sierra Madre, a deliberately grounded warship serving as a Philippine military outpost, sits at the shoal "illegally."

The previous resupply attempt, on September 25, was suspended after a Chinese coast guard vessel carried out what Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela described as "dangerous maneuvers" against the supply vessel M/V Lapu-Lapu, according to The Diplomat. That followed a confrontation in September in which Chinese warships blocked a Philippine resupply mission to the BRP Sierra Madre at Second Thomas Shoal. The Diplomat reported the tacit arrangement between Manila and Beijing meant to prevent clashes at the shoal has since collapsed.

Second Thomas Shoal sits within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone in the Spratly Islands. China disputes Philippine presence there and claims most of the South China Sea under the nine-dash line.