The Philippines' fisheries bureau said the lives of a civilian crew were put at risk when the Chinese Coast Guard fired water cannons and sideswiped one of its vessels while it conducted marine research around a disputed South China Sea reef.

Philippine officials criticized the Chinese coast guard for allegedly using a powerful water cannon on a Philippine fishing boat near Sandy Cay in the South China Sea. The incident heightens tensions in the disputed region.

The US and the Philippines held a new round of joint sails within Manila’s exclusive economic zone, with their coast guards participating for the first time, amid continuing tensions in the disputed South China Sea.