China Coast Guard blasts Philippine vessels with water

SCARBOROUGH SHOAL: The Philippines slammed the ‘dangerous’ actions of the China Coast Guard,’ which accused Manila of provocation China Coast Guard ships yesterday blasted water cannons at two Philippine government vessels in the South China Sea, the third confrontation this week, as top diplomats met in Manila for the annual foreign ministers’ meetings, with the skirmishes in the disputed waters high on the agenda.China claims virtually the entire sea passage, a key global trade route, despite a 2016 arbitration ruling based on the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea that invalidated Beijing’s expansive claims.The latest high-seas faceoff happened near Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan Island, 黃岩島), which Taiwan also claims, for the second day in a row. The Philippine Coast Guard said a Ch