The headquarters of a newly established coast guard district, formerly overseen from neighbouring Palawan, will cover an area of about 68,000 square kilometres.
An AFP journalist traveling to the new command centre on Pagasa Island, known as Thitu in the Philippines, saw multiple Chinese Coast Guard vessels patrolling nearby waters. The vessels issued radio warnings to the plane carrying the journalist.
Beijing claims the South China Sea in nearly its entirety, despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis.
Pagasa will now have a commodore-level commander on site, Philippine Coast Guard Commandant Ronnie Gil Gavan told reporters after a Thursday “activation” ceremony, along with a permanently stationed ship, more response vessels and an unspecified number of specialists.
“The establishment of the coast guard district here will also enhance the psyche, the mindset of each and every coast guard member, that… the defence of Kalayaan island group is a top priority,” Gavan said, using the Filipino name for the Spratlys.
The move will also include the dredging of a deeper port that will allow for the docking of coast guard vessels, which must currently ferry personnel to and from Pagasa on small boats.
The far-flung Kota and Parola islands will also see their substations raised to full station status, coast guard spokesman Jay Tarriela said.
The Pagasa upgrade, meanwhile, will mean a bigger budget for greater community assistance to the island’s inhabitants, including more teachers and doctors, he said.
Pagasa Island is home to about 400 Filipinos, mostly fishermen and their families, who China accuses of living there illegally.
The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Thursday.
The Philippines last month revealed plans to rename more than 100 island features in the Spratlys in a bid to reinforce its “sovereignty” in the South China Sea.
China subsequently accused Manila of breaking international law while threatening unspecified measures to protect its own claims.