• Manila says it deployed aircraft Tuesday to challenge Chinese research ship near Cagayan province

ISTANBUL

China said on Wednesday that it conducted “law enforcement patrols” near Huangyan Dao, the disputed territory also known as Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc in the South China Sea that is also claimed by the Philippines.

The China Coast Guard said it “conducted law enforcement patrols in the territorial sea of Huangyan Dao and its surrounding waters,” according to a statement published on China’s official military website.

“Since December, the China Coast Guard has been consistently carrying out law enforcement patrols in the relevant maritime areas,” in accordance with “laws and regulations,” the statement added.

The China Coast Guard said it has been “regulating vessels engaged in illegal infringement and provocation, further strengthening control over the relevant sea areas, and resolutely safeguarding national territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests.”

Manila has yet to respond to Beijing’s latest statement on the patrols.

China claims sovereignty over Huangyan Dao -- also known as Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc -- a territory also claimed by the Philippines.

The shoal has long been a flashpoint in maritime disputes between Beijing and Manila.

Separately, Manila said it deployed an aircraft on Tuesday to challenge a Chinese research ship operating near Cagayan province located in northern Philippines.

According to a statement shared by Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Jay Tarriela on US social media company X, after detecting the Chinese Research Vessel, the Coast Guard pilot “issued multiple radio challenges to the vessel, inquiring about its intentions and reminding it of the requirement for prior consent for marine scientific research in Philippine waters."

The Chinese vessel “did not respond to any of the radio calls," Tarriela said.