Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi Warns Beijing’s ‘Nature Reserve’ Claim Is a Pretext for Further Aggression

WASHINGTON – Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08), Ranking Member of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), issued the following statement in response to the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) announcement of its intent to establish a so-called “national nature reserve” at Scarborough Shoal, a disputed maritime feature in the South China Sea:

“China’s announcement of its intent to establish a so-called national nature reserve at Scarborough Shoal is alarming and suggests Beijing may seek to further tighten its grip on a strategic maritime feature located within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone. Such a step could provide a pretext for China to construct military or dual-use infrastructure at Scarborough—a move the United States, and the international community have staunchly opposed since Beijing first seized the shoal in 2012.

Might will never make right, and twisting the law will never legitimize land-grabbing. I condemn this move by Beijing and call on it to comply with international law, including the UN Charter, UNCLOS, and the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. The United States will continue to oppose China’s maritime aggression and to stand with our allies in support of peace and stability.”

As Ranking Member of the Select Committee, Congressman Krishnamoorthi has consistently called out Beijing’s efforts to unilaterally alter the status quo in the Indo-Pacific, including its militarization of artificial islands, harassment of Philippine vessels, and use of “gray-zone” tactics to expand its claims. Scarborough Shoal—long a flashpoint in the South China Sea—was seized by Beijing in 2012 after a standoff with the Philippines. In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled overwhelmingly against China’s sweeping claims in the South China Sea, finding that Beijing’s claims and actions in the South China Sea violated international law.