Philippine, Chinese ships collide near hotspot reef: Beijing

Philippine and Chinese vessels collided near the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea on Monday, the Chinese Coast Guard said, as Beijing steps up efforts to push its claims over the disputed area.

Known in Chinese as the Ren'ai Reef, the Second Thomas Shoal has seen an escalating number of confrontations between Chinese and Philippine ships in recent months.

These have often taken place during Philippine attempts to supply a garrison of Philippine troops on a grounded navy vessel, the Sierra Madre, aimed at asserting Manila's claims to the reef.

The shoal lies about 200 kilometers (120 miles) from the western Philippine island of Palawan and more than 1,000 kilometres from China's nearest major landmass, Hainan island.

The Chinese coast guard said that a Philippine resupply ship in the area had "ignored many solemn warnings from the Chinese side".

It "approached the... Chinese vessel in an unprofessional way, resulting in a collision", Beijing said.

Beijing accused the ship of having "illegally broken into the sea near Ren'ai Reef in China's Nansha Islands".

"The Chinese Coast Guard took control measures against the Philippine ship in accordance with the law."

Manila, in response, said it would "not dignify the deceptive and misleading claims of the China Coast Guard".

"The main issue remains... the illegal presence and actions of Chinese vessels within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, which infringes on our sovereignty and sovereign rights," the Armed Forces of the Philippines said in a statement.

"The continued aggressive actions of the CCG are escalating tensions in the region," it added.

Beijing claims almost the entirety of the South China Sea, brushing aside...