Philippines-China tensions Scarborough Shoal

The Scarborough Shoal dispute between the Philippines and the People’s Republic of China
tensions began on April 8, 2012, after the attempted apprehensions by the Philippine Navy
and Chinese fishing vessels near the Shoal. Scarborough Shoal is a rock in the South China
Sea, approximately 120 nautical miles or 220 kilometers west of the Philippine Island of
Luzon inside the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Philippines but is claimed by China all the
island's reefs and shoals within a U-shaped line in the South China Sea drawn in 1947 as its
territory. Scarborough Shoal has rich fishing grounds and the seabed is believed to hold
substantial mineral resources, including petroleum and natural gas.
In January 2013, The Philippines formally initiated arbitration proceedings against China's
claim on the territories within the “nine-dash line” including Scarborough Shoal, which the
Philippines claimed is unlawful under the United Nations Conventions on the Law of the Sea
(UNCLOS), it is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine
and maritime activities.
On July 12, 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration ( PCA ) tribunal ruled in favor of the
Philippines it included that there is no evidence that China had historically exercised
exclusive control over the waters or resources hence there was no legal basis for China to
claim historic rights over the area within the nine-dash line. The tribunal also judged that
China had caused severe harm to the coral reef environment and that it had violated the
Philippines' sovereign rights in its Exclusive Economic Zone by interfering with Philippine
fishing and petroleum exploration-restricting fishing rights of Filipino fishermen at
Scarborough Shoal. China rejected the ruling, Afterwards, China sent more warships to the
Scarborough Shoal.
China warned the Philippines on Tuesday not to stir up trouble over a disputed reef after the
Philippine Coast Guard said it removed a floating barrier at a disputed reef that was
allegedly deployed by China to block Filipinos from fishing grounds. China claims sovereignty
over almost the entire South China Sea, while several other countries including the
Philippines have overlapping claims to parts of it. Philippine officials previously accused the
Chinese coast guard of installing the barrier. China has ignored the 2016 international court
ruling that its claims have no legal basis. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. says the Philippines
is not looking for trouble but will defend its waters against Chinese aggression.