Philippines lodges protest against China over its recent move in South China Sea

The Philippines on May 1 lodged a protest against Beijing accusing it of violating its sovereignty in the South China Sea. The Philippines was reportedly upset with China's recent move of naming new districts in the disputed South China Sea, over which US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had criticised the Communist state recently. Earlier this month, China announced it created two 'new districts' in the South China Sea near Vietnam and the West Philippine Sea.

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The newly inducted districts include the Paracel island group and the Spratly island group, which Beijing said were now under the control of the Chinese city of Sansha in Hainan province. "The Philippine government strongly protests the establishment of the so-called districts of 'Nansha' and 'Xisha' under the supposed administrative jurisdiction of its self-declared 'Sansha City,'" the Philippines foreign ministry said in a statement posted on its twitter handle.

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Pompeo on China's action

Mike Pompeo had called out China's new unilateral announcement of administrative districts over disputed islands and maritime areas in the South China Sea, its sinking of a Vietnamese fishing vessel earlier this month, and its 'research stations' on Fiery Cross Reef and Subi Reef. Pompeo accused Beijing of taking advantage of the distraction caused by the coronavirus outbreak. "Even as we fight the outbreak, we must remember that the long-term threats to our shared security have not disappeared," Pompeo said.

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Pompeo also launched a scathing attack on the ruling Communist Party of China, accusing it of exploiting the world’s focus on the COVID-19 crisis by continuing its provocative behaviour in the South China Sea. Pompeo also discussed a scientific report showing that Beijing’s upstream dam operations have unilaterally altered flows of the Mekong river, depriving Mekong countries of water for years. Pompeo said that the US strongly opposes China’s bullying and hoped other nations will hold them to account too.

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(Image Credit: AP)