COMMENT | About a week ago, a Philippines supply boat in an area where territorial claims are disputed with China, was fired upon with water cannons by two Chinese boats, causing minor injuries and a shattered windscreen.

It sparked a diplomatic incident and disputed accounts by both parties involved.

This was nothing new and has happened before. Not only the Philippines but Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam have conflicting claims with China.

China audaciously claims huge swathes of territory in the area through its nine-dash (now 10-dash) map but the Permanent Court on Arbitration in the Hague found no basis for China’s claims way back in July 2016.

Predictably, China has...