US Coast Guard Assisted Rescue of Filipino Sailor in South China Sea Incident

A United States Coast Guard vessel helped facilitate the rescue of a Filipino sailor clubbed by Chinese coast guard personnel at Ayungin Shoal on Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said. Blinken shared this in an interview with the media on the sidelines of the ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting in Manila on Thursday. It came hours before US President Donald Trump told President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. by phone that he would raise Manila's concerns directly with Chinese President Xi Jinping. "There was a US Coast Guard vessel in the region at the time that this happened and actually helped stand between the two sides," Blinken said, adding the presence of the US vessel "allowed the individual who was injured to be rescued and brought back for medical treatment." Confirmation from the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Coast Guard was not immediately available. This article will be updated with their response. The military earlier this week said a rigid hull inflatable boat carrying eight personnel from China Coast Guard vessel 21560 approached the BRP Sierra Madre on Monday morning, circling the grounded Navy ship while taking photos and videos. When two AFP rubber boats moved to drive it away, a Chinese crewman struck a Navy serviceman on the head with a wooden baton, injuring him and damaging one of the boats. China's coast guard accused Manila of the opposite and said it was the Filipino side that was provocative. The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea rejected this as "false and misleading" and pointed out Chinese vessels' use of force in the same location on June 17. The head injury is the worst a Filipino has sustained in the dispute over Ayungin, where previous injuries came from water cannon blasts and a 2024 ramming that led a Navy serviceman to lose his thumb. Monday's clash broke a relative quiet at Ayungin that had held since the two countries reached a provisional arrangement in 2024. Blinken called the incident "disturbing" and said the US would live by its mutual defense treaty with the Philippines. Washington is "not going to abandon" its allies, he added. He paired the assurance with an acknowledgement of Washington's need for ties with Beijing. "We have to have a relationship with China. We want it to be as positive as it possibly can be, but that won't come at the expense of our allies and our partners in the region or our presence here either," he said. Trump made his commitment to Marcos in a phone call Thursday evening (Philippines), a day after Marcos briefed Blinken on the incident in Malacañang. "President Trump assured President Marcos that he will take up the concerns of the Philippines in his next meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping," the Presidential Communications Office said. The two leaders are expected to meet when Xi visits the US in September. There has not been a let-up in maritime incidents, as yesterday the Philippines had another run-in with a Chinese vessel at sea. Yeesterday, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela said a Chinese coast guard vessel fired a water cannon that indirectly hit a Philippine fisheries vessel near Scarborough Shoal. There were no reports of injuries.