Open QuestionsChina used water cannons as ‘deterrence’ against Philippine ships, PLA senior colonel Zhou Bo says

Senior Colonel Zhou Bo (retired) is a senior fellow with the Centre for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University. He spent four decades with the People’s Liberation Army, mainly in diplomatic roles. For other interviews in the Open Questions series, click here.

China has never used force against the Philippines. Yes the Chinese coastguard used water cannons to dispel the Philippine coastguard, but I think that is deterrence, not a use of force. Historically, it is the Philippine coastguard that has used force to kill innocent Chinese fishermen from the mainland and Taiwan in 2000, 2006 and 2013. Few people seem to remember that, but you can google it to find out.

The Philippines ran a naval ship aground in May 1999 at Renai Jiao (Second Thomas Shoal) on the pretext of “technical difficulties”. In the face of Chinese protests, it made promises to tow away the vessel. But it has not done that. Instead, the Philippines has attempted to build it into a permanent installation.