 "China sets baselines for contested South China Sea shoal amid dispute with Philippines")
In a move that’s likely to increase tensions over overlapping territorial claims, China has released geographic coordinates marking baselines around the contested Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea.
China’s move came two days after Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed two laws demarcating the government’s claims in the disputed waters.
Both China and the Philippines lay claim to Scarborough Shoal, located west of Luzon, the Philippines’ main island. China took control of the shoal in 2012, limiting access for Filipino fishermen, despite a 2016 international arbitration ruling that invalidated most of China’s claims in the South China Sea — a decision Beijing has ignored.
The disputed area has seen frequent confrontations, including ship collisions and incidents of the Chinese coast guard using water cannons against Philippine vessels.
A Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said that the delimiting of the baselines was in accordance with a U.N. agreement and Chinese law.
“This is a natural step by the Chinese government to lawfully strengthen marine management and is consistent with international law and common practices,” it said.
The statement added that one of the laws signed by Marcos, the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, violates China’s sovereignty in the South China Sea.
“China firmly opposes it and will continue to do everything necessary in accordance with law to firmly defend its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests,” the Foreign Ministry said.
China stakes claim to almost the entirety of the South China Sea. It has a series of disputes with several Southeast Asian nations including the Philippines and Vietnam over territory in the waters, which are part of a key shipping route in Asia.
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