Philippines says flares fired from a Chinese island base threatened its fisheries plane

Associated Press

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Officials say a Philippine fisheries bureau plane has been threatened by flares fired from a Chinese island. The plane conducting a routine patrol in the South China Sea. It’s the latest territorial spat between Beijing and Manila over one of the world’s busiest trade routes. Philippine officials said Saturday that the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources’ plane was flying near Subi Reef on Thursday when it spotted flares being fired from the reef, which has been transformed by China into a militarized island base. No other details were provided, including the distance of the flares from the Philippine plane. It was unclear if the plane proceeded with its patrol monitoring for poachers in the internationally recognized exclusive economic zone of the Philippines.