Camille Naredo

Chinese flags wave with Philippine flags along Roxas Boulevard in Manila on November 19, 2018. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News/File

Chinese flags wave with Philippine flags along Roxas Boulevard in Manila on November 19, ahead of Chinese president Xi Jinping's state visit in the country. Xi will be visiting the country from November 20 to 21. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Flying the Chinese flag

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1784634200004viber_image_2026-07-21_18-23-58-901.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. meets with Chinese Ambassador to Philippines Jing Quan in Malacanang, July 21, 2026. Handout/PCO"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. meets with Chinese Ambassador to Philippines Jing Quan in Malacanang, July 21, 2026. <em>Handout/PCO</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA (<strong>UPDATED</strong>) -- The Philippines and China summoned each other&#x27;s ambassadors on Tuesday following a clash at a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, which sparked condemnation of Beijing by Manila&#x27;s allies.</p><p>Beijing claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, a vital global trade route, despite an international ruling that found its claims have no legal basis.</p><p>Multiple nations in the region, including the Philippines, have territorial claims that overlap with China&#x27;s, and altercations regularly occur in the heavily patrolled waterway.</p><p>The Philippine military accused the China Coast Guard of clubbing a Filipino sailor with a baton on Monday as they approached a grounded vessel that has long served as a Philippine garrison.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/7/20/ph-navy-officer-sustains-head-injury-after-confrontation-with-china-coast-guard-1605">READ: PH Navy personnel injured after China Coast Guard baton attack at Ayungin Shoal</a></div><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/7/21/marcos-condemns-attack-on-navy-in-ayungin-shoal-but-maintains-diplomatic-stance-1348">READ: Marcos condemns attack on Navy in Ayungin Shoal, but maintains diplomatic stance</a></div><p>Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos met with China&#x27;s ambassador to Manila on Tuesday after summoning the envoy over the incident at the flashpoint Second Thomas Shoal, presidential spokeswoman Claire Castro told reporters.</p><p>She declined to give details of the meeting but said it had involved a matter of &quot;national security&quot;.</p><p>Earlier in the day, China&#x27;s foreign ministry said it had &quot;urgently summoned&quot; the Philippine ambassador &quot;to lodge solemn representations over the Philippines&#x27; deliberate provocation and attack... at Ren&#x27;ai Reef&quot;, using the Chinese name for the reef.</p><p>&quot;The Philippine side provoked first, yet it has turned the blame upside down, distorted the facts, and maliciously hyped the issue,&quot; Beijing&#x27;s foreign ministry said in a statement.</p><p>Key Philippine allies condemned the clash, with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong slamming &quot;<a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/7/21/australia-raises-concern-over-china-s-sea-actions-boosts-philippine-maritime-capabilities-1032">destabilizing and dangerous conduct</a>&quot; by China.</p><p>Wong&#x27;s comment came after Washington condemned Beijing&#x27;s &quot;<a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/7/21/us-slams-dangerous-china-action-in-sea-clash-with-philippines-navy-0840">dangerous and aggressive actions</a>&quot;.</p><p>US Secretary of State <a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/7/21/us-secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-arrives-in-ph-to-attend-asean-meetings-1614">Marco Rubio landed in Manila on Tuesday</a> for a summit of the 11-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).</p><p>Rubio has said he is open to a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, who will also attend the ASEAN summit, though talks have not been publicly confirmed.</p><p>The two met last year on the sidelines of an ASEAN gathering in Kuala Lumpur and again in Munich in February.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/7/21/myanmar-s-future-mideast-fighting-hang-over-asean-talks-1019">READ: South China Sea rivalry looms over ASEAN meeting</a></div><p>In an opinion piece published in Philippine media outlets on Tuesday, Rubio heralded Washington&#x27;s commitment &quot;to freedom of navigation in Southeast Asia&quot; while reaffirming the US defensive umbrella in the region.</p><p>&quot;This freedom is by no means guaranteed. If these waters were to fall under the control of a power willing to use trade as a geopolitical weapon, both the United States and the ASEAN states would face serious new threats to their sovereignty, security, and economic future,&quot; he wrote, in an apparent allusion to China.</p><div><br/></div><div><br/></div>

<p>The Philippines and China summoned each other's ambassadors on Tuesday following a clash at a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, which sparked condemnation of Beijing by Manila's allies.</p>

The Philippines and China summoned each other's ambassadors on Tuesday following a clash at a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, which sparked condemnation of Beijing by Manila's allies.

Philippines, China summon ambassadors over clash in disputed waters

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Philippines, China summon ambassadors over clash in disputed waters

Agence France-Presse

Published July 21, 2026 02:49 PM PHT

|

Updated July 21, 2026 07:43 PM PHT

Read More:

Beijing

China

South China Sea

West Philippine Sea

Ayungin Shoal

maritime dispute

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