Philippines summons Chinese envoy over sea confrontations

The Philippines has summoned China's envoy, the foreign ministry said Monday, following the most tense confrontations between the countries' vessels in years at flashpoint reefs in the disputed South China Sea.

Videos released by the Philippine Coast Guard showed Chinese ships blasting water cannon at Philippine boats during two separate resupply missions to Scarborough Shoal and Second Thomas Shoal on Saturday and Sunday.

There was also a collision between Philippine and Chinese boats at Second Thomas Shoal, with both countries trading blame for the incident.

Diplomatic protests had been filed and "the Chinese ambassador has also been summoned", foreign ministry spokeswoman Teresita Daza told a news conference on Monday.

Daza said declaring China's ambassador Huang Xilian as "persona non grata" in the Philippines was also "something that has to be seriously considered".

China's ramming and water cannoning of Filipino boats was a "serious escalation" of their tactics, Jonathan Malaya, assistant director general of the National Security Council, told reporters.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, including waters and islands near the shores of its neighbours, and has ignored an international tribunal ruling that its assertions have no legal basis.

It deploys boats to patrol the busy waterway and has built artificial islands that it has militarised to reinforce its claims.

On Sunday, the US State Department called on China to halt its "dangerous and destabilizing" actions in the sea, while foreign diplomats in Manila also criticised China's behaviour.

The confrontations at Scarborough Shoal and Second Thomas Shoal were the most intense between Philippine and Chinese vessels in years, analysts...