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China and Philippines trade blame as Coastguard ships collide in South China Sea China and the Philippines have accused each other of ramming coast guard vessels in a disputed area of the South China Sea. The Philippines has claimed a Chinese ship "directly and intentionally rammed" into its vessel, while Beijing has accused the Philippines of "deliberately" crashing into a Chinese ship. Saturday's collision near the Sabina Shoal is the latest in a long-running - and escalating - row between the two countries over various islands and zones in the South China Sea. Within the past two weeks, there have been at least three other incidents in the same area involving ships belonging to the two countries. "The US condemns the multiple dangerous violations of international law by the [People's Republic of China], including today's intentional ramming of the BRP Teresa Magbanua while it was conducting lawful operations within the[Philippines] EEZ." she wrote in a post to X. "We stand with the Philippines in upholding international law." China has repeatedly blamed the Philippines and its ally the US for the escalating tensions. Last week, a defence ministry spokesperson said Washington was "emboldening" Manila to make "reckless provocations". Observers worry the dispute could eventually spark a larger confrontation in the South China Sea. A previous attempt by the Philippines to get an independent arbitral tribunal to rule on the matter ended with the decision that China had no lawf