Contention over South China Sea

Places in News: Loaita Island

Places in news | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Effect Of Policies & Politics Of World On India'S Interests
Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: Loaita Island

Why in the News?

Philippine forces conducted combat exercises in the South China Sea to practice retaking the Loaita Island in the disputed waters.

Loaita Island

About Loaita Island 

  • Loaita Island, also known as Kota Island, has an area of 6.45 hectares and is the 10th largest of the naturally-occurring Spratly Islands.
  • The island is administered by the Philippines as part of Kalayaan, Palawan, and is also claimed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
  • Loaita Island fringes the Loaita Bank, which includes shoals and reefs, and its western side features calcarenite outcrops visible at low tide.
  • The island is covered with mangrove bushes, coconut palms, and other small trees.
  • On May 22, 1963, a sovereignty stele was rebuilt on Loaita Island by South Vietnam, marking its claim.
  • The Philippines has stationed soldiers on the island since 1968, and the island contains minimal structures serving as shelters for the soldiers.
China also reasserted its claim over Flashpoint Reef (the Scarborough Shoal) in the South China Sea following Philippines’ establishment of defined sea boundaries.

About the Flashpoint Reef 

  • Flashpoint Reef generally refers to Scarborough Shoal (part of the
    Spratly Islands), a contested reef in the South China Sea.
  • Known as Huangyan Dao in China, this reef has become a focal point of territorial disputes between China and the Philippines.
  • Flashpoint Reef lies close to the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ); which asserts control over the entire South China Sea under its nine-dash line claim.
  • China took control of the shoal in 2012 after a standoff with the Philippines, despite an international tribunal ruling in 2016 that invalidated China’s claims.

Do you know?

  • Fiery Cross Reef is a rock located in the Spratly Islands. China first took possession of the feature in 1988.
  • Mischief Reef is a Low-Tide Elevation (LTE) within the Philippines’ EEZ. It is part of the submerged continental shelf of the adjacent coastal state, which is the Philippines.

 

PYQ:

[2018] Consider the following pairs:

Regions sometimes Country mentioned in news

  1. Catalonia — Spain
  2. Crimea — Hungary
  3. Mindanao — Philippines
  4. Oromia — Nigeria

Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?

(a) 1, 2 and 3

(b) 3 and 4 only

(c) 1 and 3 only

(d) 2 and 4 only

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