Officers warn cyanide might hurt marine life and weaken the reef supporting a grounded warship.
Revealed On 13 Apr 2026
The Philippines says it has found cyanide on Chinese language boats close to a disputed South China Sea atoll, warning the substance might be used for “sabotage” towards native fish populations.
Safety officers from the Philippines stated on Monday that laboratory checks confirmed the presence of the poisonous substance in bottles seized by the Philippine navy final yr at Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef within the Spratly Islands of the South China Sea.
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The officers warned that the cyanide might have had critical penalties for marine life and weakened the reef supporting a warship that Manila grounded on the atoll to bolster its maritime declare.
“We want to underscore that the usage of cyanide in Ayungin Shoal is a type of sabotage that seeks to kill native fish populations, depriving navy personnel of a significant meals supply,” Cornelio Valencia, Nationwide Safety Council spokesperson, advised a information convention, utilizing the Philippines’ identify for the atoll.
Valencia added that cyanide might injury the reef and “in the end compromise” the warship’s stability.
The Overseas Ministry of China rejected the Philippines’ assertions, calling them a “stunt”.
“The Philippine facet illegally harassed the Chinese language fishing boats conducting regular fishing, grabbed the fishermen’s residing provides, and staged this so-called cyanide stunt. There isn’t a credibility in any way to their story,” spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated.
The Philippines has accused China of disrupting resupply missions to troops on the vessel, together with a June 17, 2024, incident that turned violent and resulted in a Filipino sailor shedding a finger.
In December 2025, the Philippines accused Chinese language coastguard ships of firing water cannon at Filipino fishermen close to the disputed Sabina Shoal, injuring three individuals and inflicting “important injury” to 2 fishing vessels.
China has denied allegations of aggressive conduct throughout such encounters and accused the Philippines of trespassing in its waters.
China and the Philippines held high-level talks final month over the South China Sea, exploring preliminary steps in direction of oil and fuel cooperation, and confidence-building measures at sea, together with communication between their coastguards.
The Philippine Overseas Ministry stated in an announcement on Monday that the scope of the coastguard cooperation could be restricted, and “doesn’t ponder cooperation in delicate operational areas”, including that there had been no discussions on joint patrols.
China claims almost all of the South China Sea, together with areas claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
A 2016 ruling by a world arbitral tribunal discovered Beijing’s sweeping claims had no foundation underneath worldwide regulation, a choice China rejects.
Greater than $3 trillion in annual ship-borne commerce travels by means of the important thing waterway.
