Philippines rejects new Chinese territorial claim

China has claimed new territory less than 50 miles (80 kilometres) from a Philippine province, boosting tensions over potentially resource-rich areas of the South China Sea, but the Philippines has dismissed the claim, an official said Monday. Energy Under-secretary Jose Layug Jr. told The Associated Press that China protested a Philippine plan to explore for oil and gas in the area in July.
It is the closest point in waters off the main Philippine islands that China has claimed in the increasingly tense territorial disputes. Beijing has been asserting its territorial claims more aggressively as its economic and diplomatic muscle has grown. Its new claims are likely to bolster Philippine resolve to seek a UN ruling on the long-simmering disputes, which involve China, the Philippines and four other claimants.
Among the areas being contested is the Spratlys, a chain of up to 190 islands, reefs, coral outcrops and banks believed to be sitting atop large deposits of oil and natural gas, which many fear could be Asia's next flash point for conflict. The issue is expected to be discussed Wednesday with visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. The two new areas being claimed by China are not part of the Spratlys, Layug said.
The Chinese Embassy delivered a protest to the Philippine government on July 4 after Manila invited foreign companies to bid for the right to explore for oil and gas in 15 areas. Chinese officials opposed the inclusion of "areas 3 and 4" north-west of Palawan province, claiming they fall under Chinese sovereign territory.
China told the Philippine government that the planned oil explorations violated a nonbinding 2002 accord that called on claimants to South China Sea territories to stop occupying new areas and avoid action that could spark tension. In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a regular briefing: "We do not want foreign commerce involved in these kinds of investment and disputes over the South China Sea."
Palawan province, about 510 miles (820 kilometres) south-west of Manila, faces the South China Sea, which is claimed entirely by China. One of the offshore areas now being claimed by Beijing lies just 49 miles (79 kilometers) north-west of Palawan, while the other is 76 miles (123 kilometres) from the western Philippine province, Layug said.
The Philippine government told China the areas are located well within Philippine waters and are far from any disputed area, officials said. "The areas that we're offering for bidding are all within Philippine territory," Layug said. "There is no doubt about that."