On Monday, July 21st, 2026, a dispute erupted in the South China Sea near the Second Thomas Shoal, involving Chinese and Philippine vessels. The incident left a Philippine sailor injured following a confrontation near the BRP Sierra Madre, a grounded Philippine warship used as a military outpost by Manila.

The Philippine military alleges that a Chinese coastguard boat approached the outpost and harassed it, injuring the sailor with blows to the head from a wooden baton. Beijing claims nearly all of the South China Sea and has demanded the removal of the outpost, despite the shoal lying within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile (370 km) exclusive economic zone and approximately 1,000 km (808 miles) from mainland China.

According to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which China has ratified, the Second Thomas Shoal is within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.

A spokesperson from the U.S. State Department stated, “China’s troubling pattern of provocation against lawful Philippine maritime operations undermines regional peace and stability and directly contradicts China’s repeated commitments to resolve disputes peacefully.”

The incident has further strained relations, with the Philippines rebuking the Chinese embassy over coercive warnings of job losses, China barring the Philippines' defense chief, and Manila protesting what it calls a racist portrayal of Filipinos in China Daily videos.

Sources