China quietly seized a disputed reef just miles away from the Philippines’ most important military outpost in the South China Sea, in a sharp escalation of a regional dispute with the Philippines, raising the risk of a new military stand-off between the two rival claimants.
According to the FT, the China Coast Guard “implemented maritime control and exercised sovereign jurisdiction” over Sandy Cay this month, the military channel of state broadcaster CCTV reported on Saturday. It released images of four officers, wearing all black and holding the Chinese flag, declaring sovereignty over the reef in the Spratly Islands.
Sandy Cay is near a Philippine military outpost on Thitu Island, which Manila reportedly uses to track Chinese movements in the area.
The move marks the first time in many years that Beijing, which claims the South China Sea almost in its entirety, has officially planted its flag on another previously unoccupied land feature.
It comes as the Philippines and its ally the US are conducting Balikatan, their largest annual military exercise, which will include coastal defense and island seizure drills. They will be held from next week on the Philippine territory closest to the Spratlys.
Although just a sand bank measuring little more than 200 square metres, Sandy Cay has strategic value for China because international law grants it a territorial sea. That 12-nautical-mile radius overlaps with Thitu Island, the South China Sea reef the Philippines uses to track Chinese moves in the area.
The Philippine government has yet to formally respond. Both China and the Philippines have staked their claims on various islands and zones. Their dispute has been escalating, with frequent confrontations including vessels colliding and scuffles.
The White House said the reports of China seizing Sandy Cay were “deeply concerning if true”.
