China Warns Philippines Not To 'Stir Up Trouble' Over Disputed Reef Floating Barrier South China Sea

Beijing warned Manila on Tuesday not to "stir up trouble" after the Philippine Coast Guard said it had removed a floating barrier at a disputed reef that was allegedly deployed by China to block Filipinos from the traditional fishing ground.

Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea has long been a source of tension between the countries. China seized the ring of reefs from the Philippines in 2012 and has since deployed patrol boats to keep out Filipino fishermen. 

The latest spat was sparked by a 300-metre (328-yard) floating barrier that was found across the entrance of the shoal last week during a routine Philippine government resupply mission to Filipino fishermen plying the waters near the shoal.

The Philippines condemned the installation and its coast guard announced on Monday that it had "successfully" removed the barrier from the reef, which Manila calls Bajo de Masinloc, in a special operation ordered by President Ferdinand Marcos. 

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin hit back on Tuesday, saying Beijing "firmly upholds the sovereignty and maritime rights and interests of the Huangyan island", referring to the shoal by its Chinese name.

"We advise the Philippines not to provoke or stir up trouble," Wang added.

'Well within rights'

Philippine National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano responded to the warning by saying his country was "well within its rights" to remove any barrier at the reef.

China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, despite a 2016 international court ruling that its stance has no legal basis.

Scarborough Shoal sits 240 kilometres (150 miles) west of the Philippines' main island of Luzon and nearly 900 kilometres from the nearest major Chinese land mass of Hainan.

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