Thread by @olliekarp

In today's #dailysoup, let's go back to the SCS/WPS dispute as I'll introduce a disputed arrow-shaped atoll, the Whitsun Reef.

As a part of the Spratly group of islands, it is known for being a hotspot of disputed claims between China, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

1/18

The Whitsun Reef is a part of the "Union Banks group" of the Spratly group of islands. It is located at the NE portion of the "Union Banks group".

Moreover, it is located 417.08km W of Palawan.

2/18

Before the mid-1990s, the Whitsun Reef was considered as a "low-tide elevation", in which the reef was visible only in low tide, but a 100m long sand dune turned the low-tide elevation into what it looks like today.

3/18

However, it's still unclear on whether the Whitsun Reef is an island, an atoll, or just a bunch of rocks, and it remains uninhabited.

Moreover, coz of the presence of natural resources like fish and oil in the area, the reef is subject to territorial disputes between...

4/18

...China, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

After the Philippines won in the 2016 SCS Arbitration Ruling, Chinese vessels continue to illegally loiter at the Whitsun Reef for years, especially as shown by statistics from the Asian Maritime Transparency Initiative.

5/18

In early March of 2021, a Philippine Coast Guard patrol noticed that around 220 "Chinese vessels" were using the Whitsun Reef, which is in the Philippines' EEZ, as an "illegal maritime parking lot", lingering for months without even doing anything.

6/18

Then, PCG patrol ships identified some of the Chinese vessels in the so-called "maritime parking lot" in the Whitsun Reef.

They noticed that the labellings in these ships start with the Chinese word "Yue" and end with "Yu", and...



7/18

https://twitter.com/FMangosingINQ/status/1383306881469349888?s=20

...these identified Chinese vessels came from an area of Guangdong Province located just NE of Hainan Island.

Moreover, these ships failed to possess AIS signals, preventing them from being seen by satellite radars. This one, combined with heavy cloud cover, could...

8/18

...explain why AMTI's statistics on the number of Chinese vessels illegally loitering in the Whitsun Reef in March 2021 were incomplete and scarce.

9/18

Then, in late March of 2021, a Philippine military plane flying over the Whitsun Reef ignored megaphone warnings from the loitering Chinese vessels to "go away".

10/18

Although Manila requested for Beijing to withdraw its vessels parking in the Whitsun Reef, around 44 Chinese vessels lingered in the reef, while other vessels left for other reefs in the SCS/WPS.

11/18

While Manila and Washington, as well as its allies, expressed concerns on Chinese illegal loitering in the Whitsun Reef, Chinese officials tried to justify the actions of the Chinese vessels in the reef, with Hua Chunying from the Chinese Foreign Ministry...

12/18

...claiming that "they are just fishing", while the Chinese Embassy of Manila under Huang Xilian claimed that "there is no maritime militia involved in the reef".

But, findings from @AndrewSErickson invalidated claims from these Chinese officials.



13/18

https://twitter.com/AndrewSErickson/status/1376644386986033154?s=20

The Chinese vessels identified in the Whitsun Reef incident were a part of an obscure Chinese firm called "Fancheng Fisheries".

However, two PLA officials, Wan Liangan and Zhang Yuanfa, were present in the firm's delivery ceremony, indicating the firm's links to the PLA.

14/18

Hence, the identified Chinese vessels from Guangdong were not fishing boats, but militia vessels operating under the "Far Seas Militia Squadron", in which its leader, Li Guangyi, visited one of its militia vessels and then told its crew to "go protect China's SCS claims".

15/18

Meanwhile, former pro-China Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte rejected US assistance during the Whitsun Reef Incident, spewing out pro-China peepotalking remarks x whataboutisms like: "the US didn't help us in the Scarborough Shoal" and "China is our friend"

16/18

Meanwhile, Chinese and Vietnamese ships were playing "cat-and-mouse" games in the Whitsun Reef, as well as a few other nearby areas.

During the Whitsun Reef Incident, Hanoi demanded China to stop loitering in the reef, saying that the reef is part of Vietnamese territory.

17/18

Even after the Whitsun Reef Incident, many Chinese maritime militia vessels continue to park themselves in the reef from 2021 to 2023.

They are still doing the very same thing as of this writing.

18/18

Support my work:

Related entries:
Entry #60 (South China Sea dispute) - https://t.co/WSUt6Q9i8K

Entry #62 (Scarborough Shoal) - https://t.co/EdtJG47XaM

Entry #48 (Huang Xilian) - https://t.co/fJsK1vL4uRbuymeacoffee.com/olliekarp

https://twitter.com/olliekarp/status/1654762604278210560?s=20

https://twitter.com/olliekarp/status/1655631123739979776?s=20

https://twitter.com/olliekarp/status/1647633740397694981?s=20

This is Entry #65 of the #dailysoup. For previous entries, kindly visit this link:

Shoutouts: @AndrewSErickson, @supbrow, @FMangosingINQ, @d_viekass, @Aaron_MatthewIL, @Julio_Amador3, @jaytaryela, @coastguardph, @duandangbit.ly/thedailysoup

APPENDIX: A "buoy war" is on the works after China illegally installed buoys at the Irving and Whitsun reefs, both in the Spratly group of Islands located in the Philippines' EEZ.

The Philippines responded by deploying buoys to defend the area.

1/2

Meanwhile, Vietnam protested against Chinese forces illegally installing buoys in the Irving x Whitsun reefs in Vietnam's EEZ, requesting for China to withdraw its maritime militia ships, as well as its Yang Hong 10 research vessel.

2/2

@threadreaderapp unroll