“The US stands with our Philippine ally in rejecting China’s destabilising plans to establish a ‘national nature reserve’ at Scarborough Reef,” Rubio wrote Friday on X. “This is yet another coercive attempt to advance China’s interests at the expense of its neighbours and regional stability.” He added: “Claiming Scarborough Reef as a nature preserve is another example of Beijing using pressure tactics to push expansive maritime and territorial claims, disregarding the rights of neighbouring countries.”

On Wednesday, China’s State Council announced plans to establish a 3,500-hectare (8,650-acre) nature reserve on the disputed islet, describing the initiative as an “important guarantee for maintaining … diversity, stability and sustainability.”

Scarborough Shoal lies about 240 km (150 miles) west of the Philippines’ main island of Luzon and is within the country’s exclusive economic zone, but has been under Beijing’s control since 2012. The nature reserve plan has drawn sharp responses from Manila. On Thursday, the Department of Foreign Affairs vowed to lodge a “formal diplomatic protest against this illegitimate and unlawful action.”

According to the Philippine Star, National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said China’s planned “Huangyan Island National Nature Reserve” is “patently illegal.” He cited violations of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the 2016 arbitral ruling in favour of Manila regarding China’s claims in the sea, and the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

“This move by the People’s Republic of China is less about protecting the environment and more about justifying its control over a maritime feature that is part of the territory of the Philippines and whose waters lie within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone,” Año was quoted as saying. (Aljazeera)