The Philippines is actively upgrading amenities on two islands it controls within the disputed Spratly chain within the South China Sea, satellite tv for pc pictures reviewed by Radio Free Asia revealed.
The growth of the runway at Thitu Island and the port at Nanshan Island, are supposed to solidify Manila’s bodily presence within the Spratlys in response to latest Chinese language escalations within the Spratly archipelago, a scattering of a whole lot of small islands, atolls and reefs claimed by many various international locations, specialists stated.
As soon as accomplished, Manila can have higher entry the 2 islands, making provide runs and different logistic challenges simpler, thereby bettering readiness to react to emergencies in territory it considers to be inside its unique financial zone, they stated.
“Hope” for a bigger runway
Thitu, known as Pag-asa, which means “Hope” in Tagalog, is the bigger of the 2 islands, and is the one Philippine-administered characteristic within the Spratly Islands with a everlasting civilian inhabitants. It was first occupied by the Philippines in 1974 and it’s also claimed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam. Its most distinguished artifical characteristic is a 1.3-kilometer (.8-mile) runway.
In its 2025 funds, Manila earmarked 1.65 billion pesos (US$27 million) to increase the runway to 1.5 kilometers (.93 miles) a size adequate to accommodate sure variants of the F-16 fighter jet, in addition to mild fight and transport plane. One other 300 million pesos ($5 million) has been put aside for the development of a sheltered port.
Satellite tv for pc imagery captured by Planet Labs confirms that development started shortly after the funds was accredited and stays ongoing as of Could 2026.
The roughly 200-meter (656-foot) extension seems to be over an space that was beforehand submerged.
In a picture from April 2, a barge might be seen on the western a part of the runway, probably delivering development supplies.
The runway extension marks a big shift within the Philippines’ posture to strengthen the resilience of its outposts within the South China Sea, Harrison Prétat, deputy director of the Washington-based Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, instructed RFA
“The actual latest drivers I believe have been the tensions between China and Philippines at Second Thomas Shoal principally from round 2021 up till 2024,” stated Prétat.
Second Thomas Shoal, situated roughly 224 kilometers (139 miles) from Thitu has been a flashpoint between the 2 international locations since 1999, when the Philippines intentionally grounded a navy ship on the shoal and stationed troops aboard. The vessel-turned-outpost, which requires fixed resupply from the Philippine Coast Guard and Navy, has been on the heart of escalating confrontations since roughly 2021.
China started utilizing coast guard and naval vessels to intervene with and block these provide missions from the Philippines. Tensions reached a vital level in the summertime of 2024, when Chinese language personnel rammed Philippine vessels and boarded them and a Filipino sailor misplaced a thumb within the incident.
Shortly afterward, Manila and Beijing reached an settlement to scale back tensions on the shoal, however either side acknowledged the state of affairs had already grown too harmful and risky, Prétat famous.
“In that context, if you happen to take a look at enhancements to the runway at Thitu Island, it is smart,” he stated. “The extra they will reinforce the entry and the logistics capabilities of their outposts, I believe it makes them slightly extra resilient to a state of affairs like at Second Thomas Shoal.”
Zheng Zhihua, an affiliate professor specializing in maritime affairs at Shagnhai Jiao Tong College, instructed the South China Morning Submit that Beijing would have vital concern if U.S. forces have been in a position to make use of the amenities on the island. He added that if the expanded runway and shelter ports accommodated U.S. navy plane or coast guard vessels, it may shift the strategic strain in maritime maneuvers again onto China.
The small port in a “huge” sea
Nanshan Island is the eighth largest pure island of the Spratly Islands, situated 98 miles (158 km) east of Thitu. Referred to as Lawak, which means “huge” in Tagalog, The Philippines first took possession in 1974, and it’s the fourth largest of the Philippine-occupied islands – located removed from the primary areas of Chinese language maritime exercise within the area.
Satellite tv for pc imagery captured from October 2025 by means of April 2026 reveals that port growth on Nanshan Island stays ongoing however continues to be in early levels.
The Philippine authorities appropriated greater than 1 billion pesos ($27 million ) for the sheltered port facility on Nanshan Island, to switch the present port that has a slender entry channel and is just too shallow for bigger ships.
Specialists suppose that upgrades on Nanshan Island would undoubtedly bolster the Philippine Coast Guard’s docking capabilities and strengthen enforcement operations within the space.
“The primary influence, I believe, will likely be on the Philippines’ capability to proceed utilizing these amenities,” stated Prétat stated. “We don’t know what the port will appear like but as a result of it’s early, but when they will have a extra accessible port, it could make that outpost a bit simpler to resupply and simpler to function from.”
Robust diplomatic messages
Philippine officers have paired the infrastructure push with pointed diplomatic messaging. In February, lawmaker Risa Hontiveros and Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Jay Tarriela visited Thitu Island, assembly with native residents and issuing a agency assertion of sovereignty. In the course of the go to, Hontiveros stated, “We are going to by no means surrender Spratly Islands, together with Thitu.”
On April 9, the Philippines unveiled a brand new coast guard command base on the island in a proper ceremony attended by Transport Secretary Giovanni Lopez, Sen. Erwin Tulfo, and Coast Guard commander Adm. Ronnie Gil Gavan stated the bottom represents a everlasting step to reveal that the coast guard is able to defend the nation’s curiosity within the waters, its fishermen, their livelihood and, most significantly, its sovereignty.
Prétat stated the Philippines navy continues to be at a big drawback within the Spratly Islands in contrast with China, which maintains an intensive coast guard fleet and a community of enormous bases all through the South China Sea- enabling it to deploy vessels throughout the area on brief discover.
“Each of those expansions ― on Thitu Island and Nanshan Island ― are a part of efforts by the Philippines to extend its patrols and enhance its exercise within the South China Sea,” stated Prétat. “The Philippines is making an attempt to enhance this capability as a lot as it could actually to maintain its ships on the market ― to observe what’s going on, have maritime area consciousness, entry rotate troops, conduct logistics, and preserve some sort of presence.”
Edited by Eugene Whong.
