Harris to visit Palawan, near China-claimed waters


Source: manilatimes.net manilatimes.net

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US Vice President Kamala Harris will travel Tuesday to a Philippine island near waters claimed by China to show support for the longtime US ally and counter Beijing's growing influence in the region. Harris will be the highest-ranking US official ever to visit the western island of Palawan, the closest Philippine landmass to the Spratly archipelago in the hotly contested South China Sea. Beijing claims sovereignty over almost the entire sea and has ignored an international court ruling that its claims have no legal basis. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei have overlapping claims to parts of it. Harris will...