Scarborough Shoal

A US Department of Defense official said the Philippines "removing Chinese buoys" near Scarborough Shoal was "a bold step to protect sovereignty".

"The Philippines recently took a bold step in protecting its sovereignty, by removing buoy lines placed by Chinese coast guard vessels near Scarborough Shoal in the East Sea," said US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and East Asia. Southeast Asia Lindsey Ford said in a hearing before the subcommittee on the Indo-Pacific, US House Foreign Affairs Committee, on September 28.

Ms. Ford also reaffirmed Washington's security commitment to Manila, saying the commitment applies even in the event that the Philippine armed forces, including the Philippine Coast Guard, are attacked in the East Sea.

"We are in full compliance with those commitments," Ms. Ford said.

Ms. Ford commented after the Philippine Coast Guard announced on September 25 that it had deployed a "special operation" to cut the buoy line to stop fishermen deployed by the Chinese coast guard near Scarborough Shoal. Manila calls Beijing's release of buoy lines a violation of international law, endangering maritime activities.

Scarborough Shoal is an atoll consisting of many reefs and floating rocks located about 230 km from the main island of Luzon in the Philippines and about 1,000 km from the southeast coast of China. Both sides claim sovereignty, with Manila calling Scarborough Bajo de Masinloc, Beijing naming the shoal Huangyan.

China late on September 27 rejected information from the Philippines, saying that the country's coast guard "temporarily deployed buoy lines to prevent Philippine ships from entering the shoal, then proactively recovered them and continued to inspect them." normal control of the area".

China pushed Philippine forces out of Scarborough and has controlled this shoal since 2012. China then regularly deployed coast guard ships to patrol around Scarborough Shoal, as well as chase Filipino fishermen out of the area.

China allowed Philippine fishermen to return to fishing at Scarborough Shoal when relations between the two countries improved markedly under President Rodrigo Duterte. However, tensions escalated after President Marcos Jr. took office last year and made tough statements against Beijing.

arriela, spokesman for the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on the day of Proclamation. father on September 27.

Bajo de Masinloc is the name the Philippines calls Scarborough Shoal in the East Sea, which China calls Huangyan. This shoal is a coral reef with only one entrance, with a water area of ​​about 150 square kilometers that was once considered a traditional fishing ground for Filipino fishermen.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) affirmed that it will continue to cut any buoys that China places at Scarborough Shoal. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. also said Manila would resolutely protect its sovereignty.

"In the coming months, if that fence is set up again, the Philippine coast guard will do whatever is necessary to remove that fence," PCG spokesman Jay said. Tarriela said on September 29.

Previously, Manila conducted an aerial patrol in the Scarborough Shoal area in the East Sea and confirmed that China's floating buoy had completely disappeared. Mr. Tarriela said the presence of Chinese ships here has also decreased after the incident, to 4 ships on September 28 compared to 7 ships last week.

In an announcement on September 25, PCG confirmed that it had successfully removed a 300-meter-long Chinese buoy in this area "to protect the rights of Filipino fishermen."

Also on September 29, in his first public statement about the incident, Mr. Marcos said that his government "did not want to cause trouble".

However, he emphasized that he would "continue to protect the Philippines, the maritime territory of the Philippines, the rights of our fishermen to fish in areas where they have been fishing for hundreds of years". Speaking about Beijing's cutting of the floating barrier, Mr. Marcos said Manila could do nothing else.