Chinese and Philippine naval forces clashed near the contested Second Thomas Shoal in the West Philippine Sea today. Seen here, the crews of two small vessels beat each other with sticks and oars.

The reef is occupied by a garrison of Philippine Navy personnel aboard a ship, the BRP Sierra Madre, that was intentionally grounded on the reef in 1999 and has been periodically replenished since then.

"Did the war that ended human civilization start when AI became self-aware?" *No, it was started by three guys on an inflatable dinghy."

With the Philippines on this. China has gotten away with violating their economic waters for decades now, with very little condemnation from the international bodies. This issue has been ignored for too long.

CHINA CLUBS A FILIPINO SAILOR China's coast guard struck a Philippine navy sailor in the head with a baton near Second Thomas Shoal, in the Philippines' own waters. Manila says the sailor was seriously hurt. China claims a sea 1,300 miles from home and beats the men who patrol it. This is the bully America has to help hold off. NOW EVERYONE KNOWS #China #Philippines

When real life looks like a satire comedy reel.

Who’s who? The guys in the zodiac are thinking, “We’re going to need a bigger boat.”

The Chinese are bringing back ancient warfare on land & sea

Be pretty cool if wars were decided like this with a best out of three. Hahah

In the U.S., this is called “a typical weekend”.

It’s so bizarre to see a nuclear power fight yet another border invasion with sticks.

Longer version of the video for who feels not enough

They should add battering rams to their boats. It would make it more entertaining for everyone.

Witness the overwhelming might of PLAN.

China is cancer!

Don’t F with the Chinese navy. Impressive display of force.

It'd be a shame if the Fillipinos started carrying something to foul the propeller blades with...

So these are the Philippines Navy??? I thought they were Somali Pirates！

I used to have sympathy for the Philippines but after 6,244 - bad experiences with Filipino call centers I no longer care what happens to them

Just curious who is who? Is Chinese in small or big boat so I know who to root for. I'm for Philippine's. 😂

And thus the real world is revealed. Since the beginning of humans on this planet, if you can take it, hold it, and protect it, it's yours. We're seeing that play out in real time in that video. That's a truth that's hard for some people to swallow, but if you give it more than a minute's thought, you'll realize it's true. Power politics wins the day. Like it or not...

@MalcolmNance I believe sticks are specifically banned by the UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) of 1983

I am looking into offering rental firearms for filipino fisherman, so they can fight these pirates off with lethal force.

This has been going on for years as China plays the long game in expanding the “China Sea” and what they consider “their shipping lanes”.

Second Thomas Shoal being well within the Philippines’ EEZ, and well beyond that of China, there can be no “contested feature” here 🤷🏻‍♂️

China is remarkably tolerant. Can you imagine what the US would do if Cuban forces in a raft made a claim on Little Duck Key? I suspect it would be much more kinetic than this.

This is like China vs India warfare in the mountains. But on water.

We shall now enter into battle, ready oar not!

那是中国海警，菲律宾是海军

Wouldn't it be nice if all wars were kept to this minimum of fighting?

I hope both teams have a good time.