China holds ‘combat patrol’ in South China Sea amid US-led war games

China has conducted military “combat patrols” in the disputed South China Sea, as the United States holds the first joint military exercises with the Philippines, Japan and Australia.

Beijing’s surprise announcement of a naval drill on Sunday came a day after defence chiefs from the four countries said the Philippines would host joint drills in the same area on the same day.

Beijing’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command said it was organising “joint naval and air combat patrols in the South China Sea”.

“All military activities that mess up the situation in the South China Sea and create hotspots are under control,” it said in a statement in an apparent swipe at the US-led drills.

The Chinese army gave no further details about its activities in the waterway on Sunday.

The exercises took place days before US President Joe Biden was due to hold the first trilateral summit with the leaders of Japan and the Philippines.

Top US officials have repeatedly declared the US’s “ironclad” commitment to defending the Philippines against an armed attack in the South China Sea – to the consternation of Beijing.

Trading accusations

China claims sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea and has been increasingly assertive in the region in recent years.

A 2016 ruling by a court in The Hague declared Beijing’s claim as without basis. But Beijing has ignored that ruling as well as competing claims by the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations.

On Saturday, China’s coastguard also traded accusations with the Philippines. It said it had “handled” a situation on Thursday at Iroquois Reef, claiming several ships from the Philippines were engaged in “illegal” operations.

“Under the guise of ‘protecting fishing’, Philippine government ships have illegally violated and provoked, organised media to deliberately incite and mislead, continuing to undermine stability in the South China Sea,” spokesman Gan Yu said.

“We are telling the Philippines that any infringement tactics are in vain,” Gan said, adding that China would “regularly enforce the law in waters under [its] jurisdiction”.

Iroquois Reef lies about 128 nautical miles (237 kilometres) from the Philippines’ island of Palawan, and within its 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) as defined under international law. Philippine coastguard spokesman Jay Tarriela also accused China of conducting “illegal enforcement operations”.

The reef lies some 1,215 kilometres (657 nautical miles) from China’s southernmost Hainan island.

The joint drills, hosted by the Philippines on Sunday, are intended to “[ensure] that all countries are free to fly, sail, and operate wherever international law allows,” US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a joint statement.

Named the “Maritime Cooperative Activity”, the drills will include naval and air force units from all four countries, the joint statement said.

Reports said the exercises will also include anti-submarine warfare training to safeguard “the rule of law that is the foundation for a peaceful and stable Indo-Pacific region”.