China says handled Philippine ‘infringement’ at disputed reef

A photo from March 2024 shows Philippine scientists inspecting the disputed reef. PHOTO: AFP

UPDATED Apr 28, 2025, 12:41 AM

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BEIJING - China’s coast guard said on April 27 it had “dealt with” a situation involving six Filipinos who it accused of illegally landing on a disputed reef, after Beijing’s state media said the tiny sandbank had recently come under Chinese control.

Beijing claims sovereignty over almost all of the South China Sea and has waved away competing assertions from other countries in the region as well as an international ruling that its position has no legal basis.

China and the Philippines have engaged in months of confrontations in the contested waters, and Manila is currently taking part in sweeping joint military drills with the United States that Beijing has slammed as destabilising.

Chinese coast guard spokesperson Liu Dejun said in a statement the evening of April 27 that six personnel from the Philippines had earlier that day “illegally boarded” the Tiexian Reef, also known as Sandy Cay, despite “warnings and dissuasion” from the Chinese side.

Mr Liu said that Chinese coast guard personnel then “boarded the reef and investigated and dealt with it in accordance with the law”.

The statement did not provide further details on the encounter or the identities of the six people from the Philippines.

“We urge the Philippines to immediately stop its infringement,” Mr Liu said, adding that the actions “violated China’s territorial sovereignty”.

The sandbank, part of the Spratly Islands, lies near Thitu Island, also called Pag-asa and the site of a Philippine military facility.

Chinese state media said on April 26 that the country’s coast guard “implemented maritime control” over the Tiexian Reef during the middle of April.