MANILA, Philippines -- China has described as a mere "stunt" the allegation of the National Security Council (NSC) that Chinese fishermen used cyanide near Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea to deny food and water to Filipino troops stationed there.
Beijing rejected the NSC's claim. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Guo Jiakun said it was the Philippine Navy (PN) who harassed the Chinese fishernmen in Ren’ai Jiao, the Chinese name for Ayungin Shoal.
"There is no credibility whatsoever to their story," Guo said on Monday. He said Ren’ai Jiao is part of Nansha Qundao or Spratly islands and "belongs to China."
The NSC said the yellow bottles recovered in February and October 2025 by the PN from Chinese sampans operating near the BRP Sierra Madre (LS 57) in Ayungin Shoal or Second Thomas Shoal tested positive for cyanide.
The use of cyanide on Ayungin Shoal is a form of "sabotage that seeks to kill local fish populations, depriving Navy personnel of a vital food source," NSC Assistant Director-General Cornelio Valencia said in a statement.
But Guo said the Philippines "illegally grounded its vessel on Ren’ai Jiao and has caused great damage to the eco-environment there, which has been confirmed by relevant reports."
"The Philippine side illegally harassed the Chinese fishing boats conducting normal fishing, grabbed the fishermen’s living supplies, and staged this so-called cyanide stunt," he added. The Chinese Embassy in Manila shared Guo's statement.
Valencia said laboratory analysis conducted by the National Bureau of Investigation's Forensic and Scientific Research Service showed that the bottles seized from the sampans contain cyanide, "a highly toxic chemical known to cause severe and irreversible damage to humans and marine ecosystems."
"Such actions, if proven intentional, constitute a blatant violation of Philippine environmental laws, international maritime norms, and the obligations of states under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea," he said.
"Moreover, cyanide can damage the reef which can ultimately compromise LS 57’s structural foundations," Valencia added.
"If the reef is severely damaged, it not only threatens LS 57’s stability, it also allows Beijing to fabricate an environmental crisis which it can then blame on the Philippines. It has in the past accused LS 57 of polluting the shoal in an effort to distract from its own illegal activities," he said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in 2023 said the Philippines had decided in 1999 to deploy a "permanent station on Ayungin Shoal [through the BRP Sierra Madre] in response to China’s illegal occupation of Panganiban Reef in 1995."
The BRP Sierra Madre, the DFA said, serves as "a permanent station for Philippine military personnel deployed to protect and secure Philippine rights and interests in the West Philippine Sea, particularly in the Ayungin Shoal and its vicinity."
