China has posthumously honored two Coast Guard officers who died while “safeguarding maritime rights” in the South China Sea last year, appearing to confirm the first Chinese fatalities from a clash in the contested waters since a collision with a US aircraft in 2001.
The People’s Armed Police, which oversees the China Coast Guard, recognized Yi Xinyu and Cheng Long as “martyrs” this week, according to an official website. Both of them died on Aug 11, 2025, at age 21 and 25 respectively, the listing showed.
The announcement didn’t describe the circumstances of their deaths. On the same day, however, a China Coast Guard vessel and a People’s Liberation Army Navy warship collided near Scarborough Shoal after one of them chased a Philippine Coast Guard ship.
The collision caused “substantial damage” to the Coast Guard vessel’s forecastle, according to a Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson at the time. Images published by the Philippine state broadcaster PTV showed the bow of the Chinese vessel badly damaged. Beijing didn’t disclose any casualties after the incident.
The deaths appear to be China’s first acknowledged fatalities from an operation or confrontation in the South China Sea since 2001, when PLA Navy pilot Wang Wei died after his fighter jet collided with a US reconnaissance aircraft over the waters.
Beijing and Washington disputed responsibility for that collision, although the US ultimately issued a carefully worded statement expressing regret, and China released the 24 American crew members it had held on Hainan island days after. The episode deepened Beijing’s suspicions of US intentions in the region, which has since become a major flashpoint between the two powers.
China prefers to keep a low profile on casualties from its military operations. After a deadly border clash with India in 2020, Beijing waited about eight months before releasing its first account of the Chinese troops who were killed.
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