China Coast Guard Doubles Down on Blaming Philippine Vessel; Analysts Warn Civilian Missions at Growing Risk

China Coast Guard spokesperson Jiang Lue reiterated Beijing's position that the Philippine BFAR vessel BRP Datu Magat Salamat was responsible for the September 18 collision, saying the vessel 'ignored warnings from the Chinese side, deliberately changed course and suddenly' rammed the CCG cutter, and that 'the responsibility lies with the Philippine side.' Jiang said China would continue law enforcement operations in the disputed waters and reasserted Chinese sovereignty claims over the South China Sea Islands. Philippine outlets continued to carry DFA's condemnation of the incident as 'illegal, coercive, aggressive and dangerous.' Security analyst Chester B. Cabalza, president of the International Development and Security Cooperation, said the increasingly close encounters between Chinese forces and Philippine civilian government vessels could make it harder for Manila to safely carry out fishery and humanitarian missions in the South China Sea, framing the ramming as part of a broader Chinese effort 'to alter the rules-based maritime order into a power-based approach, showing off its muscle at sea even against civilian government assets.' Cabalza recommended Manila continue filing diplomatic protests and pursue an active transparency strategy to publicize China's maneuvering.