MAKING A SPLASH

Philippines Accuse Chinese Coast Guard of ‘Forcefully’ Swiping Rocket Debris

The debris was being towed in the South China Sea when the incident took place.

A Philippine military commander on Monday accused a Chinese Coast Guard vessel of using force to retrieve a piece of rocket debris floating in the South China Sea as it was being towed by a Philippine ship. Vice Admiral Alberto Carlos said a ship had been sent to collect the item after it was spotted near Thitu island on Sunday. The crew tied the Chinese rocket component—later confirmed to be casing that protects its nose cone—to their boat and started towing it before they were cut off by the Chinese Coast Guard vessel. Carlos said the Coast Guard boat deployed an inflatable watercraft which cut the tow line, and the rocket part was taken back to the main Chinese ship. China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Monday that the item had been voluntarily handed over after a “friendly negotiation.” The incident took place after Vice President Kamala Harris arrived in the Philippines Sunday in a bid to bolster U.S. ties with the Asian country as tensions with Beijing mount over Taiwan.