China has reasserted its territories around a flashpoint reef in the contested waters in South China Sea after the Philippines defined its sea boundaries. It is believed that China opposes the Philippine’s move to define the country’s maritime entitlements in the South China Sea.
Philippine’s President, Ferdinand Marcos Jr signed two laws on Friday defining the country’s maritime entitlements and set designated sea lanes and air routes to “reinforce sovereignty”.
Meanwhile, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Sunday stated that “it firmly opposes this and it will continue to take all necessary measures in accordance with the law to resolutely defend the country’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests”. The statement by the Chinese ministry defined a baseline of “territorial waters” around the Scarborough Shoal, which China claims as its territory and calls Huangyan Island.
The shoal is a major point of contention over sovereignty and fishing rights. China has also enacted domestic laws covering the South China Sea, such as a coastguard law in 2021 that allows it to detain foreigners suspected of trespassing.
In 2016, China rejected a ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague that its sweeping claims were not supported by international law. Beijing claims sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea, including areas claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. However, the United States backs the court’s ruling in the case, which was brought by Manila.
Escalating tensions have threatened to draw in the US, which has a mutual defence treaty with the Philippines and has promised to come to Manila’s aid in the case of any armed third-party attacks against Filipino soldiers. These include coastguard personnel, aircraft or public vessels “anywhere” in the South China Sea.
There has been reports that China parades the dispute area with an armada of coastguard ships to assert its claims. Beijing routinely accuses vessels of trespassing in areas of the Sea that fall inside the exclusive economic zones of its neighbours and has clashed repeatedly with the Philippines over the years.
On Sunday, China’s coastguard issued a statement claiming that the Philippines has frequently sent military and police warships and aircraft to “intrude” into the waters and airspace near the Scarborough Shoal, accusing Manila of instigating “illegal fishing” in the area.
The escalating tensions have threatened to draw in the US, which has a mutual defence treaty with the Philippines and has promised to come to Manila’s aid in the case of any armed third-party attacks against Filipino soldiers. These include coastguard personnel, aircraft or public vessels “anywhere” in the South China Sea.
