MANILA: The Philippine task force on South China Sea issues confirmed on Wednesday that a floating platform previously detected in the Scarborough Shoal has been removed.
“While we take note of the removal, we reiterate our principled and unyielding position: Bajo de Masinloc is and will always be an integral part of Philippine territory,” the task force said in a statement, using the official Philippine name for the shoal.
It added that the Philippines has “indivisible, incontrovertible and longstanding sovereignty” over the shoal, which is located 200km (124 miles) off the western coast of the country. It is 874km from Hainan, China’s nearest land mass.
“Only the Philippines has the right to place or construct structures and conduct activities, including marine scientific research, in Bajo de Masinloc and its territorial sea,” it said, urging all foreign entities to abide by international law and cease actions that infringe upon Philippine sovereignty.
Manila has earlier lodged a diplomatic protest against China over the presence of what it described as a “movable platform,” which the Philippine Coast Guard said was likely deployed by Chinese research vessels.
