Chinese structures, military equipment monitored in Subi Reef in WPS

Chinese structures and military equipment were observed in Subi or Zamora Reef, which is part of the Philippines’ continental shelf in West Philippine Sea (WPS) near Pag-asa Island in Palawan.

The structures and equipment were spotted by a plane from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) that was checking on Chinese activities in Sandy Cay, according to an Unang Balita report by Raffy Tima on Tuesday.

Huge structures, a runway, radar domes, antennas, vehicles, and hangars were seen in the artificial island in Subi Reef, which was built by China in 2013.

A wide deepwater shelter port was also seen in the area where Chinese ships can shelter amid big waves, according to the report.

Chinese maritime militia vessels were also observed around the area.

In July, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the Philippines has officially asked the United Nations for the country’s entitlement to an extended continental shelf (ECS) in the West Palawan Region in the WPS.

This move rejects China's massive claim over the South China Sea.

On June 14, the Philippine Mission to the UN in New York submitted "information to the United Nations (UN) Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) to register the country’s entitlement to an extended continental shelf (ECS) in the West Palawan Region in the West Philippine Sea/South China Sea..."

Citing Article 76 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Manila said "a coastal State such as the Philippines is entitled to establish the outer limits of its continental shelf comprising the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas extending beyond 200 nautical miles (NM) but not to exceed 350 NM from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured."

CLCS is a body that governs the implementation of the UNCLOS on the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines. —Joviland Rita/KBK, GMA Integrated News