TOPSHOT – This photo taken on February 15, 2024 [+] shows Filipino fishermen aboard their wooden boats sailing past a Chinese coast guard ship near the China-controlled Scarborough Shoal, in disputed waters of the South China Sea. The Philippines on February 17 accused Chinese coast guard vessels of “dangerous” manoeuvres for attempting to block a Filipino vessel dropping supplies to fishermen at a reef off the Southeast Asian nation’s coast. (Photo by Ted ALJIBE / AFP) (Photo by TED ALJIBE/AFP via Getty Images)
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FORBES | Published December 1, 2029
Today, Chinese Coast Guard vessels patrolled Scarborough Shoal today, marking at least the fourth incursion by the People’s Republic of China into the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone since the Philippines announced two new laws. On November 8, the Philippines passed the Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act and the Maritime Zones Act to bolster its maritime claims. The PRC has responded with military actions and a legal assault of its own. Both sides are engaging in lawfare, the use of law to achieve a strategic or military objective. In doing so, they are engaging in legal preparation of the battlefield for future conflict in the South China Sea.
Dueling Laws for the Philippines and China
The Philippines’ Maritime Zones Act aims to align Philippine domestic law with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2016 South China Sea arbitration. The arbitration award invalidated PRC claims to numerous features within the Philippines’ EEZ, including Scarborough Shoal. The Act asserts and reinforces the Philippines’ maritime boundaries and formalizes the term “West Philippine Sea,” the state’s preferred term for the portion of the South China Sea that falls within the Philippines’ EEZ. The Act also recognizes the Kalayaan Island Group as Philippine territory, including Pag-Asa Island and Sabina Shoal, both sites of recent PRC military actions. At least 60 Chinese maritime militia vessels swarmed Pag-Asa Island on November 28.
The Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act designates three standard sea routes for foreign navigation in Philippine internal waters and archipelagic waters, in accordance with UNCLOS. Before these lanes were established, foreign vessels could determine their own routes, leading to tensions with Philippine authorities. The Act also makes foreign ship and air operators liable for damages resulting from non-compliance. The Act will enable the Philippines to better enforce its laws against PRC military vessels, which have loitered inside the archipelago without permission. The Philippines will submit the routes to the International Maritime Organization for approval.
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SOURCE: www.forbes.com
RELATED: China Coast Guard Says It Conducted Patrols Around Scarborough Shoal In South China Sea
A China Coast Guard ship is seen from a Philippine fishing boat at the disputed Scarborough Shoal April 6, 2017. Picture taken April 6, 2017. REUTERS/Erik De Castro/File Photo
GCAPTAIN | Published December 1, 2029
BEIJING, Nov 30 (Reuters) – China’s coast guard said it had conducted patrols around the Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea on Saturday to safeguard China’s territorial rights.
The coast guard has continued to strengthen law enforcement patrols in the territorial waters and surrounding areas of Scarborough Shoal since the beginning of November, and “resolutely safeguarding the country’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests,” it said in a statement.
Tensions between China and the Philippines over disputed areas of the South China Sea have escalated throughout the year, particularly over the Scarborough Shoal.
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SOURCE: www.gcaptain.com
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