Chinese coast guard vessels, backed by navy ships, have fired powerful water cannons and blocked and sideswiped a Philippine patrol vessel in renewed aggression in a disputed shoal in the South China Sea.

The latest dispute in the controversial waters follows China’s submission of nautical charts to the United Nations, drawing a baseline "territorial waters" around the prime fishing patch of the Scarborough Shoal, which is a major flashpoint between the two.

Philippine officials say Chinese coast guard vessels backed by navy ships have fired powerful water cannons and blocked and sideswiped a Philippine patrol vessel at a disputed shoal in the South China