# Marcos balances ASEAN chair against China's Scarborough 'nature reserve'
> Manila condemns Beijing's 3,500-hectare reserve as a sovereignty grab, mandates Philippine names for sea features — while chairing ASEAN and courting a code of conduct

**Meta:** type: story · date: 2026-06-10 · heads: من يقرّر, اللعبة الطويلة · 5 takes · 3 lenses · 4 regions

## Summary

[Ferdinand Marcos Jr](/ar/entity/ferdinand-marcos-jr) is running a two-track South China Sea policy as 2026 ASEAN
chair. He condemned Beijing's approval of a ~3,500-hectare "nature reserve" at
[Scarborough Shoal](/ar/entity/south-china-sea) as an infringement of [Philippines](/ar/entity/philippines) sovereignty,
and issued an executive order mandating Philippine names for West Philippine Sea
features. At the same time he is courting de-escalation: he says he would host [Xi Jinping](/ar/entity/xi-jinping)
in Manila only if a binding South China Sea code of conduct is concluded in 2026, while
deepening defence cooperation with the US. As ASEAN chair he must hold a consensus that
includes China-friendly members — a balancing act analysts say forces Manila's rhetoric
to outrun the bloc's caution. Chinese coast-guard water-cannoning and dangerous
manoeuvres against Philippine vessels continue.

## By the numbers

- ~3,500 — hectares of the Scarborough Shoal "nature reserve" Beijing approved.
- 2026 — Philippines' ASEAN chairmanship year; target for a code-of-conduct deal.
- 1 condition — Marcos's offer to host Xi: conclude the code of conduct first.

## Why it matters

Scarborough sits inside the Philippine EEZ and astride fishing grounds; a Chinese
"reserve" is a step toward administrative control of contested water. Marcos's chair year
gives him a platform but also a constraint — he cannot push ASEAN past members who depend
on Beijing, so symbolism (names, condemnations) substitutes for enforcement.

## What to watch

- Whether code-of-conduct talks produce a binding text in 2026.
- Chinese construction or patrols actualising the "nature reserve".
- US–Philippine defence steps and any new flashpoint at sea.

## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens)

### unlabelled
- **Official Gazette / Malacañang (Executive Order on WPS names)** (Philippines, en) — Malacañang's executive order mandating use of Philippine names for West Philippine Sea features — the primary instrument behind Marcos's assertion of sovereignty over Scarborough Shoal and adjacent waters.
  Source: https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/
- **The Diplomat** (Japan, en) — 
  Source: https://thediplomat.com/2026/04/china-the-philippines-and-the-real-lesson-of-second-thomas-shoal/
- **China-US Focus** (Hong Kong, en) — 
  Source: https://www.chinausfocus.com/foreign-policy/strategic-crossroads-marcos-jrs-balancing-act-with-the-us-and-china

### Philippine independent
- **Rappler** (Philippines, en) — Details Marcos's order standardising Philippine names for sea features as a legal-symbolic counter to Beijing's reserve declaration, and his condition that Xi visit Manila only if a South China Sea code of conduct is concluded — the carrot to China's stick.
  > "Marcos mandated Philippine names for West Philippine Sea features and said he would host Xi in Manila only if code-of-conduct talks conclude in 2026."
  Source: https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/explainers/marcos-executive-order-philippine-names-features-west-sea/

### US think-tank
- **CSIS** (United States, en) — Argues that as 2026 ASEAN chair Marcos must temper confrontation to hold a consensus that includes China-friendly members, even as he deepens defence ties with the US — a gap between Manila's rhetoric and the bloc's caution.
  > "As ASEAN chair, Marcos must soften confrontation to keep a consensus that includes China-leaning members, widening the gap between rhetoric and reality."
  Source: https://www.csis.org/analysis/rhetoric-vs-reality-philippines-asean-and-south-china-sea

## Across the graph
- Related: [[marcos-sara-duterte-impeachment-trial]], [[china-rare-earth-controls]]
- Entities: Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Philippines, South China Sea

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Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/ar/n/marcos-scarborough-nature-reserve