Chinese Navy Ships Collide During Attack on Philippine Coastguard
11th August 2025
A Chinese navy vessel collided with one from its own coast guard while chasing a Philippine patrol boat in the South China Sea.
The crew of the Philippine patrol boat filmed the moment the smaller Chinese coast guard ship and the larger navy vessel collided head-on, with a large bang being heard as the ships make impact.
The Philippine coast guard said the collision happened near the Scarborough Shoal, a disputed collection of reefs and rocks in prime fishing grounds where their vessels had been deployed to help Filipino fishermen. China seized control of the shoal in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in 2012.
The crash is the latest in a series of confrontations in the South China Sea, one of the most important shipping routes for global trade. Several countries lay claim to parts of the waterway, but China claims nearly all of it despite a 2016 UN tribunal challenging their claim.