ISTANBUL

China claimed Thursday that it "expelled" a Filipino naval vessel from what it described as Chinese territorial waters, while the Philippines accused Beijing of “aggressive and unsafe maneuvers” in a fresh escalation of tensions in the South China Sea.

Both Beijing and Manila corroborated that the incident took place on Monday, about 12 nautical miles from the Chinese-named Huangyan Dao, also known as Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc.

The Philippines said 11.8 nautical miles southeast of the island, one of the two Chinese vessels tailed their ship BRP Emilio Jacinto at close range, while the other crossed its bow, creating the risk of a collision, while it was on a "routine maritime patrol," according to the Philstar newspaper.

"The Armed Forces of the Philippines expresses its serious concern over these irresponsible actions by Chinese maritime forces. Such threatening and provocative conduct can lead to misunderstandings that may escalate tensions and impact regional stability,” the media outlet said, citing a Filipino military statement.

China's military described the incident differently. Senior Col. Tian Junli, spokesman for the People’s Liberation Army Southern Theater Command, said the Filipino vessel had attempted to “intrude” into what Beijing considers its territorial waters and was lawfully “expelled,” according to state-run Global Times.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian accused Manila of “disregarding the facts and confusing right and wrong.”

"The root cause of the current tensions lies in the Philippines' repeated infringements and provocations at sea," said Lin.

A map presented by Beijing placed the Filipino vessel approximately 12.4 nautical miles from the island.

Separate incident with Japan

Separately, China Coast Guard (CCG) spokesman Liu Dejun stated that a Japanese fishing vessel "illegally entered the territorial waters of the Diaoyu Islands," known as Senkaku Islands in Japan and the Tiaoyutai Islands in Taiwan, on Wednesday and Thursday.

"CCG vessels lawfully implemented necessary control measures against the Japanese vessel and issued warnings to expel it," said Liu, urging Tokyo to "immediately cease all illegal activities in these waters."