China conducts air, sea patrols near flashpoint reef

Beijing asserts nearly the entirety of the South China Sea, dismissing competing claims from several Southeast Asian nations, including the Philippines, as well as an international ruling that deems its claims legally unfounded.

These assertions include the waters surrounding Scarborough Shoal, which Beijing took control of from Manila in 2012. The Chinese military’s Southern Theater Command announced the conduct of air and sea patrols in this area.

Patrols are also carried out by the China conducts air. The triangular chain of reefs and rocks is located 240 kilometers (150 miles) west of the Philippines’ main island of Luzon and almost 900 kilometers from the nearest Chinese territory of Hainan.

Beijing stated that the training operations around the shoal involved “reconnaissance, early warning, and air-sea patrols.”

Tensions between China and the Philippines have escalated in recent months, particularly during confrontations near the contested Second Thomas Shoal and Sabina Shoal.