Philippine defence chief says any forced Chinese towing of BRP Sierra Madre would be an act of war

Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. warned on 23 October that any attempt by China to tow away the grounded navy ship BRP Sierra Madre by force would be an act of war against the Philippines. He made the remarks in a virtual interview with reporters, days after the armed forces completed another rotation and resupply run to the ship, which serves as the Philippine military outpost on Second Thomas Shoal, known in Manila as Ayungin Shoal.

Teodoro said any threat to the vessel would be taken very seriously because it would be an act against a military ship of the Republic of the Philippines. He drew a line between an act of war and a formal state of war. He said he had no power to declare a state of war, which under the Philippine constitution only Congress can do, by a two-thirds vote of both chambers voting separately.

The warning answered a report this week in Chinese Commercial News, a Chinese-language newspaper based in Manila. The paper said Beijing was losing patience with Manila and was weighing 10 possible countermeasures, among them towing the Sierra Madre away, blocking resupply missions to its crew, sanctioning Filipino politicians seen as hostile to China, and cutting oil and fertiliser supplies to the Philippines. The paper itself said Chinese authorities had not confirmed the measures and that it was unclear whether they had entered formal decision-making. Beijing has not officially confirmed that any such step is under consideration.

Asked whether a Chinese attempt to board the ship could bring the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty with the United States into play, Teodoro said the possibility was open but that the decision would rest with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. He stressed that such an incident could, rather than necessarily would, lead to the treaty being invoked. Washington has repeatedly said the treaty covers armed attacks on Philippine armed forces, public vessels and aircraft, including the coast guard, anywhere in the South China Sea.

Teodoro declined to say whether the military was weighing changes to its rules of engagement to stop foreign personnel from boarding the ship, calling it an operational matter. On the reported economic measures, he said he had not read the article, but warned that Philippine dependence on China could be turned into a weapon, and urged government and business to diversify supply chains for critical infrastructure.

He also rejected Chinese statements about the most recent resupply. The China Coast Guard claimed in a statement this week that the Philippines delivered supplies to the ship with Chinese permission, and that Chinese officers questioned the Philippine vessel and monitored the whole operation. Chinese state media also claimed Philippine crews had disclosed their cargo over the radio. These are Chinese claims that Manila disputes. Teodoro said no one has the right to require the Philippines to seek permission to resupply the ship and that it has no obligation to disclose what a Philippine vessel carries. On 22 October, the military's spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, said the mission had been completed without seeking clearance from any foreign power, while declining to say whether Chinese ships had tried to interfere.

The Philippine Navy deliberately ran the Second World War-era ship aground at the shoal in 1999. The reef lies roughly 200 kilometres off Palawan, inside the Philippine exclusive economic zone. In September the military suspended a resupply mission after Chinese coast guard and naval vessels obstructed Philippine boats heading to the shoal, and earlier this month the Philippine Coast Guard accused Chinese vessels of delaying the medical evacuation of an ailing sailor from the ship by nearly 10 hours. China has repeatedly demanded that Manila remove the vessel and rejects a 2016 arbitral ruling that found no legal basis for its sweeping historic claims in the South China Sea.