The contents of this article are written with authoritative materials and personal opinions. The source of the literature has been marked at the end of the article, so please know.
In this world, some red lines cannot be touched, and some are fair and comfortable.
On September 16th, as the domestic political crisis in the Philippines continued to heat up, the Chinese Marine Police took control measures against a number of Philippine official ships near Huangyan Island.
This operation took place after the Philippine armed forces asked all troops in the country to enter a "full standby" state, and the entire national armed forces entered a "red alert" state at the highest level.
Large-scale protests have broken out in the Philippines since last week. A large number of people took to the streets to protest against the corruption of the Marcos government, demanding that he step down immediately, and demanding that the Philippine army immediately stop loyal to him.
Faced with domestic pressure, the Marcos government chose to provoke on Huangyan Island to divert the focus of domestic conflicts.
The political situation in the Philippines has continued to be turbulent recently. Large-scale protests broke out across the country, and public dissatisfaction with the Marcos government surged.
To this end, the armed forces of the Philippines issued two emergency orders. All troops in the country were on standby, all personnel cancelled all vacations, and the entire national armed forces entered the highest level of "red alert".
Under such a severe domestic situation, the Marcos government did not choose to ease conflicts, but instead tried to divert attention through external provocation.
The protests have continued to this day, and Marcos himself has barely dared to appear in public.
On September 10, China officially approved the establishment of a national nature reserve on Huangyan Island.
This decision not only has environmental significance, but also provides a clear legal framework and law enforcement basis for China's sovereign jurisdiction over Huangyan Island.
The establishment of the reserve means that China's management of Huangyan Island has transformed from temporary patrols to regular management.
Previously, the Chinese maritime police patrol on Huangshan Island had a certain temporary nature, and now there is a legal effect of normalized management mechanism.
China can properly build marine environmental monitoring stations, floating port supply points, and even permanent marine workstations.
On the surface, these facilities serve scientific research and environmental protection, but in fact they also provide cutting-edge locations for law enforcement forces such as coast police and fishery administration.
China's decision to establish a protected area immediately attracted reactions from the United States and the Philippines。The Philippine Ministry of Foreign Affairs first expressed "strong protest," claiming that China "unilaterally changed the status quo."
U.S. Secretary of State Rubio subsequently issued a statement saying that the U.S. “fullly supports the Philippines’ position” and called on China to change its decision.
On September 12-13, the United States and the Philippines held joint military exercises at the outskirts of Yellowstone Island, which appeared to be "free navigation exercises", in fact, for the Philippines, to support the Marcos government.
Just after the exercise, the Philippines organized more than 10 official ships to illegally invade the territorial waters of China's Huangyan Island from different directions.
These vessels include naval guards and fishing vessels. Taking three-way tactics to launch the shock simultaneously from three directions: east, south and north.
On the morning of September 16, China Coast Guard ships were waiting in the waters of Huangyan Island. A hierarchical response mechanism has been adopted for illegal intrusions by Philippine official ships.
China's maritime police first made screaming warnings, then implemented precise route control, and finally used water cannon jets.
This series of professional law enforcement measures effectively prevented Philippine official vessels from approaching the Yellow Island Lagoon and always controlling them in the peripheral waters.
At about 10 a.m., the Philippine official ship 3014 ignored China's repeated strict warnings that it intentionally collided with China's normal law enforcement ships in an unprofessional and dangerous way.
Gan Yu, spokesperson of the China Coast Guard Bureau, said that the Philippines 'deliberate infringement of rights and provocations were of a bad nature.
The collision was part of a planned and deliberate provocation on the Philippine side.
The Philippines chose to start at night and approached Huangyan Island in the early morning, trying to break into the dark. But they underestimated China's deployment and monitoring capabilities on Huangyan Island.
China not only has coast guard ships patrolling closely, but also warships that have not turned on the AIS system are hidden stationed, forming a three-dimensional defense network.
The map shows, The Philippine three-way assault attempted several times to circumvent the breakthrough, but failed to get close to the lake.
China’s establishment of protected areas on Yunnan Island has a strategic value for cross-border integration. China's actions in the South China Sea have a stronger legal basis.
In the name of protecting marine ecology, it is difficult for external forces that often use the banner of "freedom of navigation" to find high-sounding excuses for intervention.
Before and after the Huangyan Island incident, Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun had a phone call with US Defense Secretary Hegseth.
During the call, the United States repeatedly emphasized its position of avoiding conflicts and maintaining communication. But this inconsistency in words and deeds raises questions about Washington's true intentions.
China clearly drew two red lines during the call, opposing the United States '"use force to help independence" on the Taiwan issue and fanning the flames on the Philippines issue.
However, while the words were still ringing in our ears, the United States and the Philippines joined forces to cross the red line. This duplicity made the previous call seem particularly ironic.
At the same time, Japan has taken a dangerous move, for the first time allowing the United States to deploy the Tifong missile system in its Shantou Prefecture.
This system can launch Tomahawk missiles with a range of 1600 kilometers and cover Beijing, which adds a dangerous fire to the situation in the South China Sea.
The Marcos administration’s risky behavior on Yellowstone is directly linked to the decline in its domestic support rate.
It is that Marcos’s personal support rate is less than 30 percent, while Duterte’s daughter, Vice President Sarah, is probably twice his.
Analysts believe that every time Marcos' approval rate drops, he will stir up trouble in the South China Sea, and this time is no exception.
by creating external enemies, Marcos tried to create an image of "defending sovereignty" and divert domestic people's attention from his government's corruption.。
However, this strategy can be counterproductive.This action in the Philippines not only failed to achieve any substantial results, but also lost face and injured lining.
In the past few hours, the Philippine government and mainstream media have remained silent, and foreign media have only cited the Chinese announcement, without further hype.
After the Yellowstone confrontation, the Philippine government fell into silence, and the United States had only a few verbal “preoccupations” and did not see substantial intervention.
China’s decision to set up a nature reserve on Huangshan Island has changed the rules of the game in the South China Sea – a combination of sovereignty conservation and environmental protection – providing a more complete legal basis for China.
The waves in the South China Sea are still turbulent, but the route of Chinese coast guard ships is becoming more and more firm.
References:
“The Philippines organizes more than 10 official vessels to illegally break into the territorial waters of China’s Yunnan Island from different directions, and China’s maritime police are controlled according to law” 2025-09-16 14:06 PM
2. "The capital of the Philippines is full of criticism, and the finger is directly aimed at Marcos. Marcos of the Philippine authorities is" angry against corruption ", and our embassy urgently reminds" 2025-09-15 10:39 | Source: Quick Look at the Frontier
3. "Touching China's red line, as soon as Huangyan Island established a protected area, Rubio supported the Philippines and made unreasonable demands on China" 2025-09-16 09:59 | Source: Quick View Frontier