China has created a “floating barrier” in a disputed region in the South China Sea, according to Philippine authorities. The 300-meter-long chain of buoys, about 230 kilometers west of the northwest coast of the Philippines, is preventing fishermen from sailing in the area, which is within the Philippines’ economic zone, authorities said on Sunday. The barrier was discovered on Friday during a routine patrol in the southeastern part of Scarborough Reef, also known as Bajo de Masinloc, in the Philippines.
“The Philippine Coast Guard and the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources strongly condemn the installation of a floating barrier by the Chinese Coast Guard in the southeastern part of Bajo de Masinloc,” a Coast Guard spokesperson wrote on Platform X, formerly Twitter. The barrier endangers the livelihood of fishermen and boat propellers can get stuck in it, it was said.
Both China and the Philippines claim Scarborough Reef, a largely submerged atoll. It was the focus of a military incident between the two countries in 2012, after which Beijing quickly occupied the reef. Although a court ruled in 2016 that China’s historic rights to the area were no longer valid, Beijing does not recognize the ruling.
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