China’s military and coast guard said they carried out patrols in the waters around Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, as part of safeguarding Beijing’s territorial claims to the area.
Background
The Southern Theatre Command of the People’s Liberation Army said its naval and air forces conducted combat-readiness patrols in the territorial waters and airspace around the shoal. Scarborough Shoal, which Beijing calls ‘Huangyan Dao’, is claimed by both China and the Philippines and is one of Asia’s most disputed maritime sites.
In a separate statement, the China Coast Guard (CCG) later said it conducted law-enforcement patrols on Tuesday in the waters and surrounding areas of the shoal too, saying it has enhanced patrols this month and regulated ships engaged in ‘illegal rights-violation activities’, without elaborating.
Tuesday’s patrols came after joint U.S.-Philippine drills in waters near Scarborough Shoal over the weekend that Washington said underscored a shared commitment to strengthening regional and international cooperation in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
