South China Morning Post
03 April 2021
- RSIS
- Media Mentions
- South China Sea: Will the Whitsun Reef Dispute Come Between Beijing and Manila?
South China Sea: Will the Whitsun Reef Dispute Come Between Beijing and Manila?
Early last month, more than 200 Chinese fishing vessels were sighted anchored off the Whitsun Reef, which falls within Manila’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea’s Spratly Islands. Beijing says the ships are sheltering from bad weather, and that they are not militia vessels. “Satellite imagery made available in the public domain shows the Chinese boats have been entering and exiting the area at will, virtually unobstructed, since late last year,” said Dr Collin Koh, a Research Fellow at Singapore’s RSIS. It was clear that at least some of the crew were maritime militia, he added.
IDSS / Print / Online
