China fires water cannon at PCG, BFAR ships

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July 24, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — China Coast Guard ships blasted a Filipino vessel with water cannon and engaged another in a dangerous maneuver in the vicinity of Panatag Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc yesterday morning, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported.

Read Admiral Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesman for West Philippine Sea issue, said that at 6:29 a.m., a CCG ship with bow number 5302 blasted with water BRP Datu Dumangsil for two minutes, “scoring an indirect hit.”

Nearby, another CCG ship harassed BRP Datu Paiburong and came menacingly close or approximately 500 meters to its bow, according to Tarriela.

The Datu Dumangsil and Datu Paiburong were among eight Filipino vessels sent to Panatag Shoal by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to deliver fuel to fishermen as part of the “Kadiwa ng Bagong Bayaning Mangingisda” program. There were nine Chinese vessels in the area.

“These actions violated the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea and endangered Filipino personnel engaged in a purely humanitarian undertaking,” Tarriela said.

There were no reports of injuries in the incident.

“The PCG and BFAR will continue to support Filipino fisherfolk and maintain a lawful presence in the West Philippine Sea, consistent with UNCLOS and the directive of the President of protecting the Filipino fishermen,” Tarriela said in a statement.

Gibo eyes recall of defense attachés

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. said his office is seriously considering abolishing the post of Philippine defense attaché to China since Beijing has been deceptive and is only making a fool out if its relations with Manila.

“A recall is possible,” Teodoro said in an interview with ANC, noting that other defense attaché posts across the globe are also being reviewed.

“What is the use of a defense attaché in a closed society that monitors you 24/7 and which only receives fake complaints. Well, other departments can be diplomatic, but this is national defense. And if we’re just fooling each other, then we’re wasting time,” he said.

“And yes, we’re being outsmarted (nagugulangan tayo). Huwag kang magpa-unggoy sa nang-unggoy. Mas unggoy ka na kung magpa-unggoy ka sa nang-unggoy. That’s the reality,” he added.

He said shutting down useless defense attaché posts is better than allowing them to simply act as mere assistants or helpers. In Europe, he said the Philippines has only one defense attaché where at least five are needed.

He noted that the Philippines has only two defense attaches in India – a large country whose army and other military headquarters are located far from the capital.

“In China, we have two that offer us no benefit at all,” he added. “We really need to the view defense attachés in a more proactive manner and not just to treat them as helpers or aides to some personnel.”

“They should know that our kindness has limits. All that we want is respect, recognition of our rights, which we all know is unbargainable,” Teodoro said. – Michael Punongbayan