U.S. says China’s Scarborough Shoal claim ‘destabilizing’ region

The United States has criticized China for employing "unsubstantiated" justifications to bolster its conflicting territorial claims in the South China Sea. On Saturday, the U.S. accused China of deploying a protected nature reserve in Scarborough Shoal and preventing Filipino fishermen from entering the disputed waters. Tensions between Chinese coast guard vessels and Philippine fishing boats had already intensified prior to China's recent announcement of new regulations governing the area's management, which ban fishing and mining without prior authorization, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

China gained full control of Scarborough Shoal in 2012 after a confrontation with the Philippines over the shoal, situated less than 245 kilometers off the Philippine coastline. Despite this, the Filipino government maintains its assertion of sovereignty over the area. U.S. State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott expressed concern over China's utilization of environmental and legal pretexts, backed by coercion, to advance its expansive territorial and maritime assertions in the South China Sea at the expense of its neighbors.

Pigott described China's enforcement of the nature reserve as "destabilizing" for the wider Indo-Pacific region.

China released its rules for the nature reserve following several confrontations between Filipino vessels and Chinese coast guard ships in July. The Philippine Coast Guard reported on July 24 that Chinese coast guard forces employed water cannons against Filipino coast guard and fisheries bureau vessels at Scarborough Shoal. The U.S. has been opposed to the establishment of the Chinese reserve since its inception in September, offering support to the Philippines in its efforts to curb China's expanding influence in the region.

China has constructed artificial islands and erected structures in contested waters as part of its strategy to assert sweeping claims over the South China Sea.