It Looks Like China Wants To Grab More Islands In The South China Sea

Steve Mollman, Quartz: China’s latest moves in the South China Sea have sparked fears of a new land grab

In 2012, China wrested control of Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea from the Philippines. With the shoal—reefs, rocks, and a vast lagoon—located just 220 km (137 miles) from the Philippines’ main island Luzon, the incident heightened tensions and embarrassed Manila, which the following year opened a case in an international tribunal challenging Beijing’s territorial moves in the sea.

So alarm bells went

off earlier this month when Chinese ships gathered at Sandy Cay, a set of sandbars close to Philippines-occupied Thitu Island in the sea’s Spratly archipelago. The island has a small civilian population and a decrepit runway the Philippines has been meaning to repair.

Read more ....

Update: South China Sea Update: Assessing the Latest Chinese Maritime Near Thitu Island (The Diplomat)

WNU editor: Philippine President Duterte says that he is not concerned .... Duterte downplays Chinese fleet movements around Thitu island (Asia Times). He should be .... New Chinese Activity in Disputed Sea Challenges Sino-Philippine Friendship (VOA).

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