The Philippine military has blamed China for a collision between two Chinese navy and coast guard ships in disputed waters

It’s hard to call the collision of two multi-thousand-ton military ships “fortunate,” but that’s exactly what analysts are saying about the incident in the South China Sea this week that left a China Coast Guard ship with a heavily damaged bow after it hit a People’s Liberation Army Navy guided-missile destroyer.

A Chinese navy vessel collided with one from its own coast guard while chasing a Philippines patrol boat in the South China Sea on Monday, Manila said, releasing dramatic video footage of the confrontation.