Philippine military says spots more 'illegal' South China Sea structures

Photo released by Philippine Communications Operations Office (PCOO) shows Chinese vessels anchored at Whitsun Reef, some 320 kilometres (175 nautical miles) west of Palawan Island in the South China Sea.

The Philippine military said on Thursday it had documented illegal manmade structures on Union Banks in the South China Sea's Spratly Islands, near areas where hundreds of Chinese vessels had massed last month. Military chief Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana said the structures were not far from islands and features claimed by the Philippines inside its exclusive economic zone. He did not say which country had built the structures or the extent of the construction. They were discovered on March 30, during one of the military's maritime flight patrols over the South China Sea, where it has been closely monitoring the activities of the Chinese vessels believed to be manned by militias.