Kalayaan, Province of Palawan, Philippines. Taiwan want's to start exploring oil inside Kalayaan Municipality of the Palawan Province.
Chinese in Taiwan are originally from mainland China who were defeated by the China's Communist group so they retreated down south and take over the Formosan Government in Taiwan as a base island for their dream to controll back the communist Mainland China under the Republic of China government.
As the Mainland China is controlled by the Communist group, Taiwan the Republic of China claimed back the Mainland China as their territory which now both Mainland China and Taiwan are claiming each other.
Chinese in Taiwan are of the same ideology as all other Chinese in the world with the chinese in the mainland China.
With the continuous mounting of conflicts in the West Philippines Sea as a result of china's continuous expansionism affecting the Kalayaan Municipality of the Palawan Province in the Southwestern Philippines, taiwan jumps in of the same purpose as china to invade the Philippine territory.
The Kalayaan Municipality in the Kalayaaan Group of Islands is adjacent to the mainland Palawan Island and is part of the Province of Palawan which is within the 370 kilometers or 200 Nautical Miles Exclusive Economic Zone of the Philippines as granted by the United Nations' UNCLOS.
The now such called Kalayaan Group of Islands was once part of the old Sultanate of Sulu, a kingdom that exist and controlled the territory we back 12th to 15th Century. The old Sultanate of Sulu governed the Palawan Province, the now called Kalayaan Group of Islands or Spratly Islands in the West Philippines Sea together with several provinces in Mindanao Island such as the Province of Maguindanao, Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur, Zamboanga Peninsula, Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-tawi, and North Borneo (now called Sabah); before the invasion of Spain to the Philippines.
The Only country which has the rights and authority over the Spratly Islands or Kalayaan Group of Islands is the Philippines as the original territorial owner which was the old Sultanate of Sulu through Sultan Kiram has turned over his rights to the Philippine Government.
While the Philippines bracing from the China's invasion in the territory, there's another conflict is brewing in the West Philippine Sea, this time between the Philippines and Taiwan over oil and gas exploration around Ligao Island, the largest islet in the Spratlys group as reported by the INQUIRER Global Nation 30th December 2012.
The Philippine government on Saturday asserted its sovereign right to "explore and exploit" resources in the country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) as Taiwan announced plans to begin looking for oil and gas in disputed areas of the Spratlys islands chain.
Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) spokesperson, said Saturday that only the Philippines could explore in those parts of the Spratlys that lies within the country's 200-nautical mile continental shelf.
Reports from Taiwan said island nation's Bureau of Mines and state-run oil supplier CPC Corp. were keen on starting exploration for oil and gas in waters around Ligao Island, the largest Spratlys island that the Taiwanese call Taiping.
China, Vietnam and the Philippines have claims to Ligao Island.
The Philippines earlier this year offered oil exploration contracts in its claimed part of the Spratlys, a move that drew criticism from counter-claimants, especially China.
Without directly criticizing Taiwan for the move, Hernandez said foreign exploration within the Philippines' EEZ must be signed off by Manila in compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos).
"The Philippines has exclusive sovereign rights to explore and exploit all types of resources in its continental shelf within the 200 nautical miles measured from the baselines in the western side of the Philippine archipelago," Hernandez said.
"No country can conduct oil exploration in the PH continental shelf in the West Philippine Sea without the permission of the government, as provided for under Unclos," he said.
Known to be dependent on oil imports, Taiwan is initiating the oil exploration to build up its oil resources, the reports said.
Taiwan's announcement came amid renewed tensions between China and the Philippines over reports of Chinese ships patrolling in the West Philippine Sea and plans to fortify Sansha City, an administrative domain established to govern all of the Spratlys.
The Philippines called both developments violations of international law and disrespectful of the Philippines' sovereign right to its EEZ.
China this week deployed an oceangoing ship in the disputed waters, the first time for a Chinese vessel to patrol beyond its coastal waters. The patrol started ahead of the implementation of a new policing law allowing Hainan province's authorities to board and inspect foreign ships that will pass by the South China Sea, a critical international trading route.
Sources: INQUIRER Global Nation & the Spokesman of Sultan Kiram of the old Sultanate of Sulu
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