Philippine Navy spokesman Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad speaks next to a slide presentation of seized yellow bottles suspected to contain cyanide in waters of Second Thomas Shoal in the disputed South China Sea, during a press conference in Manila Monday. (AFP)
The Philippines discovered cyanide on Chinese boats operating around a disputed atoll in the South China Sea, security officials from the country said Monday.
Authorities said laboratory tests confirmed the presence of the highly toxic substance in bottles seized by the Philippine navy in operations at Second Thomas Shoal last year.
Officials warned that the cyanide could have had serious consequences for marine life and weakened the reef supporting a warship that Manila grounded on the atoll to reinforce its maritime claim.
“We wish to underscore that the use of cyanide in Ayungin Shoal is a form of sabotage that seeks to kill local fish populations, depriving Navy personnel of a vital food source,” Cornelio Valencia, National Security Council spokesperson, told a press conference using the Philippines’ name for the atoll.
Valencia added that cyanide could damage the reef and “ultimately compromise” the warship’s stability. The Chinese foreign ministry dismissed the Philippines’ assertions, calling them a “stunt”.
“The Philippine side illegally harassed the Chinese fishing boats conducting normal fishing, grabbed the fishermen’s living supplies, and staged this so-called cyanide stunt. There is no credibility whatsoever to their story,” foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Monday.
The shoal is within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone and located 1,300km (808 miles) off mainland China, which refers to it as Renai Reef.
The Philippines has accused China of disrupting resupply missions to troops on the vessel, including a June 17, 2024, incident that turned violent and resulted in a Filipino sailor losing a finger. China has denied allegations of aggressive conduct during such encounters and accused the Philippines of trespassing in its waters.
The June confrontation later led to a provisional understanding for resupply missions to the grounded ship. China and the Philippines held high-level talks last month over the South China Sea, exploring preliminary steps towards oil and gas cooperation, and confidence-building measures at sea, including communication between their coast guards.
The Philippine foreign ministry said in a statement Monday the scope of the coast guard co-operation would be limited, and “does not contemplate co-operation in sensitive operational areas,” adding that there had been no discussions on joint patrols.
China claims nearly all the South China Sea, including areas claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
A 2016 ruling by an international arbitral tribunal found Beijing’s sweeping claims had no basis under international law, a decision China rejects. More than $3tn in annual ship-borne commerce travels through the waterway.
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