China sends vessels, divers to South Sea

MANILA: China has deployed vessels and divers to explore a South China Sea shoal for reclamation, according to the Philippines, in another incident that could escalate the two nations’ maritime dispute.

The Philippine Coast Guard sent a patrol ship to the area near Escoda Shoal to deter China’s activities close to the Southeast Asian nation’s coast, spokesman Jay Tarriela was quoted as saying in a government statement Saturday.

Manila is closely watching Chinese research vessels in the area that could be gathering data, and has deployed inflatable boats to monitor them, Mr Tarriela said.

The latest incidents surrounding the shoal add to growing tensions between Manila and Beijing in the South China Sea. The number of clashes between the countries’ vessels have increased over the past year as they assert overlapping claims in the resource-rich waters.

Meanwhile, the Philippines also said on Saturday it had deployed ships to a disputed area in the South China Sea, where it accused China of building “an artificial island” in an escalating maritime row.

The coast guard sent a ship “to monitor the supposed illegal activities of China, creating ‘an artificial island’,” the office of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said in a statement, adding two other vessels were in rotational deployment in the area.

Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Jay Tarriela told a forum there had been “small-scale reclamation” of the Sabina Shoal, which Manila calls Escoda, and that China was “the most probable actor”.

The Chinese embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Philippine assertions, which could deepen the bilateral rift.

The Philippine national security adviser called on Friday for expelling Chinese diplomats over an alleged leak of a phone conversation with a Filipino admiral about the maritime dispute.

Beijing and Manila have been embroiled for a year in heated standoffs over their competing claims in the South China Sea, where US$3 trillion (110 trillion baht) worth of trade passes annually.

China claims almost all of the vital waterway, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam. The Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled in 2016 that Beijing’s claims had no basis under international law.

China has carried out extensive land reclamation on some islands in the South China Sea, building air force and other military facilities, causing concern in Washington and around the region.

A Philippine vessel has been anchored at the Sabina Shoal to “catch and document the dumping of crushed corals over the sandbars”, Mr Tarriela said, citing the “alarming” presence of dozens of Chinese ships, including research and navy vessels.