Chinese coast guard ships have used water cannons against Philippine ships that were delivering supplies to soldiers stationed in a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, the Philippine government said, as quoted by DPA and BTA.

One of the Philippine vessels suffered "severe" engine damage and another vessel's mast was broken after being hit by the "full force of the Chinese Coast Guard's water cannon," the National Task Force on the West Philippine Sea said in a statement. Another vessel was rammed by a Chinese coast guard vessel, the statement added.

The Philippine vessels were en route to the Second Thomas Shoal, known in the Philippines as Ayungin Shoal, which is located 105 nautical miles (195 km) west of the Philippine province of Palawan and is in the Philippines' exclusive economic zone.

"We condemn once again China's unprovoked actions of coercion and dangerous maneuvers against a legitimate and routine Philippine rotational and supply mission in Ayungin Shoal, which put the lives of our people at risk," the task force said.

China, which claims almost the entire South China Sea, has taken increasingly aggressive actions in the area in recent years. It is ignoring a 2016 ruling by an international arbitration court that said there was no legal or historical basis for his expansive claims, DPA noted.

China's coast guard said a Japanese fishing vessel and several patrol vessels entered the waters around disputed islands in the East China Sea yesterday, Reuters reported.

The islands, called Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan, are claimed by both countries. China's coast guard said it had taken the necessary measures in accordance with the law to chase away the Japanese ships.