MANILA, June 3 (Reuters) – A special Philippine task force said on Wednesday that it is investigating reports of an alleged new structure on the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, adding that it takes seriously any development that may affect the country’s sovereign rights.
“The Philippine government takes seriously any development that may affect the country’s sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea,” the country’s National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea said in a statement.
The West Philippine Sea is the name Manila uses for waters within its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea.
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told reporters on the sidelines of Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Saturday that he received raw information about the presence of the structure on the shoal, which has been effectively under China’s control after a standoff with the Philippines in 2012.
“I still don’t know what it is, that’s why it’s still considered raw information,” Teodoro said. “Once in a while, they put a buoy and other things there. Might be something from outside drifted inside the shoal.”
Neither Teodoro nor the country’s South China Sea task force provided further details but U.S.-based maritime monitoring group Sealight shared images on Tuesday that showed what appeared to be a structure near the shoal’s entrance.
Scarborough is a prime fishing spot located 200 km (124 miles) off the western coast of the country. It is also 874 km (472 nautical miles) from Hainan, China’s nearest land mass.
Since 2012, China has maintained constant deployment of coastguard and maritime militia ships in the area.
Sovereignty over Scarborough, which China calls Huangyan Island, has not been established, but a 2016 arbitral tribunal ruled largely in favour of the Philippines, saying China’s blockade of the shoal violated international law and that the area was a traditional fishing ground for several countries.
The Philippine task force said relevant government agencies are verifying the alleged new structure using surveillance tools.
The Philippines “remains steadfast” protecting its maritime rights and upholding international law, the task force statement said.
The Chinese embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
(Reporting by Nestor Corrales; Editing by David Stanway)
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