Structures in Scarborough: What we know so far

More than a week after security officials first acknowledged reports that a structure had been monitored inside the lagoon of Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc, the national task force tasked to coordinate government efforts in the West Philippine Sea said the structure was a 6 x 6 meter “floating structure with what appears to be an antenna.”

“Latest imagery obtained by the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) likewise shows the presence of personnel on top of the structure. Recent PCG (Philippine Coast Guard) monitoring further indicates that the platform is currently located within the shoal, with individuals observed onboard,” said the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) in a statement on Tuesday, June 9. 

The day prior, AFP chief General Romeo Brawner, Jr. made the same pronouncements, telling the media that there was a floating structure inside the lagoon. 

Bajo de Masinloc is a high-tide elevation located just over 100 nautical miles from the coast of Zambales, a province in Luzon. Since it’s a high-tide elevation, it’s a maritime feature that produces a 12 nautical mile territorial sea. 

While, on paper, the shoal is not under the sovereignty of any nation, China has been controlling access to the shoal’s once-abundant maritime resources, including its lagoon. The current status quo was put in place back in 2012, after a tense standoff between Manila and Beijing. 

A truce supposedly brokered by the United States resulted in the Philippines pulling out, while China reportedly reneged and stayed put. A Chinese vessel — be it a China Coast Guard or a Chinese Maritime Militia ship — is always patrolling the shoal’s entrance and the waters surrounding it. These ships typically harass and shoo away Philippine vessels — of the PCG, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, or even tiny boats of Filipino fisherfolk — as far away as 30 nautical miles from the vessel. 

A People’s Liberation Army Navy vessel is almost always nearby. 

What has the Philippines been doing? 

Manila has filed several demarches over the presence of the structure. 

“The Department of Foreign Affairs has already undertaken appropriate diplomatic action with the government of the People’s Republic of China in connection with the illegal presence of this floating structure. The protection of Philippine sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction remains a paramount consideration. The Philippine government will continue to take appropriate actions consistent with international law and in defense of the country’s national interests,” said the NTF-WPS. The task force did not expound on what those appropriate actions would be. 

In response, the Chinese embassy in the Philippines’ spokesperson, Ji Lingpeng, insisted that the shoal was Chinese territory. Ji repeated the usual arguments from Beijing — that the 2016 Arbitral Award, which deemed their supposed historical lacking basis, was “illegal,” and that China would “continue to firmly uphold its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea.” 

What does a demarche or a protest do? In an ideal world, it changes or at least influences the actions of the country you’re protesting. At the very least, it’s an official record of the Philippines opposing China’s actions in the shoal and could be used in the future should Manila want to take Beijing to court again. 

As for the NTF-WPS, the task force said it was “closely coordinating with relevant government agencies to monitor developments and further assess the nature, purpose, and implications of the installation and related activities within the shoal. Inter-agency efforts are ongoing to establish a complete and accurate picture of the situation.”

Since late May 2026, the Philippines has been sending both vessels and aircraft, among other things, to verify activity inside the shoal. 

What are those structures for? 

While the NTF-WPS statement implies the antenna is part of the floating structure with personnel on it, Rappler sources indicate that they could be separate in that the floating structure was used to possibly install the antenna in the shoal’s lagoon. 

The Chinese embassy, in its statement, said it was “fully within China’s sovereign rights to carry out activities including scientific research” inside the shoal, implying the structure was precisely for scientific research, as some Philippine sources had posited. 

What sort of research? The more cynical in the security sector point to island building — an activity China has carried out repeatedly and rather swiftly in the South China Sea, including in the West Philippine Sea. 

Why is Bajo de Masinloc so important?

That it’s a high-tide elevation is a key detail. 

High-tide elevations, based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, generate a 12 nautical mile territorial sea. Whoever has sovereignty over a high-tide elevation claims control of the feature, of the territorial sea, and of the air over that territorial sea.

If China turns Scarborough into an artificial island, as it has Panganiban (Mischief) Reef and Kagitingan (Fiery Cross) Reef, to name a few, that’s a gaping hole in the Philippine exclusive economic zone just 100 nautical miles away from Luzon.

Its location is critical, of course. Being able to put up a permanent structure close to the Philippines would mean, for Beijing, better control and monitoring capabilities over the West Philippine Sea. 

Manila’s stand is that “Bajo de Masinloc is an integral part of the Philippines and falls within the country’s maritime zones as recognized under international law.” Enforcing that assertion is another matter. – Rappler.com