The Royal Thai Navy plans to remove a house built on a platform 12 miles off the coast of Phuket according to the Bangkok Post.

American Chad Elwartowski and his Thai partner Supranee Thepdet, also known as Nadia Summergirl, were reportedly living in the house, built by Ocean Builders, to promote the concept of “seasteading.”

“Seasteading is the concept of creating permanent dwellings at sea, called seasteads, outside the territory claimed by any government,” says the company on its website.

In a promotional video posted to YouTube in March, Elwartowski toasts his partner with champagne on the roof of their ocean dwelling. He says 20 more floating homes are planned so others can join them in a libertarian-style community that they believe will be beyond legal jurisdictions.

Governments “have a monopoly on land but they don’t have a monopoly at sea,” Elwartowski says in the video. “We’re looking forward to freedom-loving people to come join us out on the open ocean.”

© Getty Images Tropical andaman seascape scenic off mai khao beach and wave crashing on sandy shore in phuket thailand with airplane takes off on sky in summer season. In an earlier video, he says international waters are “where there are no laws other than the law of the sea.”

But Thai authorities have a different view. They have filed a compliant, accusing the couple of breaching a section of the country’s criminal code that relates to threatening the sovereignty of a state, and erosion of a state’s independence, according to the Post. The charges carry the death penalty.

“We have already prepared a vessel, equipment and manpower to move the structure. We will try to move it within a week’’ a Thai vice-admiral told the newspaper.

Elwartowski says the couple are now in hiding. “This is ridiculous. We lived on a floating house boat for a few weeks and now Thailand wants us killed,” he said on his Facebook page.

He told TIME by email that he and his partner “have no claim to the home. It was never ours, we just lived there and promoted it.” </s> Two people are in hiding after the Royal Thai Navy occupied a small structure off the coast of Thailand, in which the couple had been living as part of a movement called “seasteading” — the creation of autonomous homes in international waters.

As reported in the Bangkok Post, the Royal Thai Navy filed a criminal complaint with police about the two occupants, American Chad Elwartowski and his Thai girlfriend Nadia Supranee Thepdet, under a section concerning threats to national soveignty. These offences carry sentences of life in prison or death. Thai authorities also say they have revoked Elwartowski’s visa.

“This is ridiculous. We lived on a floating house boat for a few weeks and now Thailand wants us killed,” Elwartowski said in the Facebook post, now hidden from the public. He said he and his girlfriend were safe, but hiding from police.

The two are the first seasteaders to put to sea as part of a group called Ocean Builders, an enterprise aimed at creating a community of floating homes, by developing and selling structures that can be self-sustaining in international waters. The couple’s home was constructed by sinking a long spar and placing an octagonal platform on top of it.

Following the incident Saturday, the Ocean Builders group posted a statement on their website saying that Elwartowski and Thepdet were not responsible for building the seastead, but were merely tenants. They said that though they initially feared the seastead had been immediately destroyed, there was some indication that it was still afloat.

Daniel A. Nagy, a personal friend of the couple who had visited them in Thailand before their seastead was launched, said in a Facebook message that “Basically, Chad and Nadia are blazing the trail, trying out how to seastead. A lot of people, including myself are following them closely to learn from their experience.” Nagy said he hadn’t heard anything from Chad or Nadia beyond what Ocean Builders had stated online.

On Thursday, Ocean Builders published another post showing data extracted from an on-board tracker emitting a signal that shows it to be 14 nautical miles from the nearest Thai island, meaning it is outside of Thailand’s territorial waters. However, it is within 24 nautical miles, meaning it is within the contiguous zone that allows states to exercise some control in order to prevent “infringement of its customs, fiscal, immigration or sanitary laws and regulations within its territory or territorial sea.”

Ocean Builders is just one group in the wider seasteader movement, of which the Seasteading Institute is the biggest player.

The Institute was founded by Patri Freidman, the grandson of the famous economist Milton Friedman, and funded in part by a $1.7 million donation from the Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel.

“Seasteaders envision a vibrant startup sector for governance, with many small groups testing out innovative ideas as they compete to better serve their residents’ needs,” the company’s website says.

The seasteading community is at its core a libertarian enterprise. They envision a world that maximizes freedom, where people are able to “vote with their homes,” simply sailing away from any community where government becomes too big or where they are unhappy.

Peter Thiel, one of the most high-profile tech-y libertarians in the world, spoke at a 2009 convention hosted by the Seasteading Institute in which he discussed why he thought seasteading was an important endeavour for humanity.

“The question of whether seasteading is desirable or possible is in my mind not even relevant — it is simply necessary,” Thiel said.

The idea of seasteading fits into the decentralized and competitive idea of governance that is part of the libertarian tradition. However, the difficult legal questions about where homes could be located, as the recent incident near Thailand shows, could be a major problem for the movement.

“Maybe there will be some reaction,” Thiel said in his 2009 address. “Maybe there will be an aircraft carrier coming toward the seastead. But if you have 10,000 seasteads, maybe it’ll be too late.”

In a 2017 interview with the New York Times, however, Thiel expressed some reservations about the technological and engineering feasibility of seasteads, noting they were “still very far in the future.”

Another setback for the seasteading movement was the end of a deal the Institute had made with French Polynesia, which appears to have disintegrated.

The idea of a microstate utopia is nothing new. The most famous example is the Principality of Sealand, which claims its status as a micronation and is entirely confined to an old anti-aircraft platform off the coast of the United Kingdom.

Even more relevant to the seasteaders vision, perhaps, is the Republic of Rose Island, a platform constructed by an Italian engineer in the Adriatic in 1967, which included everything from a restaurant to a bar and dance floor. Italian police eventually occupied the microstate and it was destroyed by the Italian navy, leading the founder to declare a government-in-exile. </s> BANGKOK, April 19 (Reuters) - A senior Thai government official on Friday urged a U.S. man and a Thai woman on the run from a possible death sentence for building an off-shore "sea home" to fight the charge in court.

The two, Chad Elwartowski and his partner Supranee Thepdet, have been accused of violating Thai sovereignty by raising a small cabin on top of a big, weighted spar in what they say are international waters, 14 nautical miles off the west-coast Thai island of Phuket.

But Thailand says the structure is in its 200-mile exclusive economic zone.

"I urge them to get a lawyer to fight this case," Supoj Rodruang Na Nongkhai, the deputy provincial governor of Phuket, told Reuters.

He said the two were believed to be in hiding in Thailand.

They have been charged under a law on the violation of sovereignty, which stipulates punishment of life in prison or death.

"Thailand will proceed with everything according to the law. We are not threatening them," Supoj said.

The pair are part of a "seasteading" movement that advocates the building of floating communities in international waters beyond the bounds of any national laws.

But the Thai navy raided their home this week and authorities revoked Elwartowski's visa and charged them.

Elwartowski and Supranee were not available for comment.

A group of entrepreneurs called Ocean Builders, which funded the construction of the floating home, said the two had done nothing wrong.

The group said in a statement the home was in a so-called contiguous zone of 12-24 nautical miles, where very limited Thai regulations applied, and they had no intention of setting up any independent state or "micro nation".

"The two of them present neither a danger to Thai sovereignty nor the shipping routes," the group said.

An official at the U.S. embassy in Bangkok said it was providing appropriate assistance to Elwartowski, who had engaged a lawyer.

In a video posted last month detailing the raising of his prototype floating home, Elwartowski said 20 more similar houses would be up for sale to forge a community.

"I'm looking forward to the good rules that people create as a community, and coming up with smarter systems as opposed to the systems they have already," he said. (Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat, Chayut Setboonsarng, and Panu Wongcha-um Editing by Robert Birsel) </s> BANGKOK -- Thai authorities have raided a floating home in the Andaman Sea belonging to an American man and his Thai partner who sought to be pioneers in the “seasteading” movement, which promotes living in international waters to be free of any nation's laws.

Thailand's navy said Chad Elwartowski and Supranee Thepdet endangered national sovereignty, an offence punishable by life imprisonment or death.

It filed a complaint against them with police on the southern resort island of Phuket. Thai authorities said they have revoked Elwartowski's visa.

Elwartowski said in an email Thursday that he believes he and Supranee - also known as Nadia Summergirl - did nothing wrong.

“This is ridiculous,” he said in an earlier statement posted online. “We lived on a floating house boat for a few weeks and now Thailand wants us killed.”

The couple, who have gone into hiding, had been living part-time on a small structure they said was anchored outside Thailand's territorial waters, just over 12 nautical miles from shore. They were not there when the navy carried out their raid on Saturday.

The Thai deputy naval commander responsible for the area said the project was a challenge to the country's authorities.

“This affects our national security and cannot be allowed,” Rear Adm. Wintharat Kotchaseni told Thai media on Tuesday. He said the floating house also posed a safety threat to navigation if it broke loose because the area is considered a shipping lane.

Seasteading has had a revival in recent years as libertarian ideas of living free from state interference - such as by using crypto-currency including Bitcoin - have become more popular, including among influential Silicon Valley figures such as entrepreneur Peter Thiel. Elwartowski, an IT specialist, has been involved in Bitcoin since 2010.

Several larger-scale projects are under development, but some in the seasteading community have credited the Andaman Sea house with being the first modern implementation of seasteading.

“The first thing to do is whatever I can to help Chad & Nadia, because living on a weird self-built structure and dreaming of future sovereignty should be considered harmless eccentricities, not major crimes,” Patri Friedman, a former Google engineer who heads The Seasteading Institute, said on his Facebook page.

The floating two-story octagonal house at the centre of the controversy had been profiled and promoted online by a group called Ocean Builders, which touted it as a pilot project and sought to sell additional units.

The group describes itself as “a team of engineering focused entrepreneurs who have a passion for seasteading and are willing to put the hard work and effort forward to see that it happens.”

In online statements, both Elwartowski and Ocean Builders said the couple merely promoted and lived on the structure, and did not fund, design, build or set the location for it.

“I was volunteering for the project promoting it with the desire to be able to be the first seasteader and continue promoting it while living on the platform,” Elwartowski told The Associated Press.

“Being a foreigner in a foreign land, seeing the news that they want to give me the death penalty for just living on a floating house had me quite scared,” Elwartowski said. “We are still quite scared for our lives. We seriously did not think we were doing anything wrong and thought this would be a huge benefit for Thailand in so many ways.”

Asked his next step, he was more optimistic.

“I believe my lawyer can come to an amicable agreement with the Thai government,” he said.

Associated Press journalist Tassanee Vejpongsa contributed to this report. </s> Thai authorities have raided a floating home in the Andaman Sea belonging to an American man and his Thai partner who sought to be pioneers in the “seasteading” movement.

Seasteading promotes living in international waters to be free of any nation’s laws.

Thailand’s navy said the pair had endangered national sovereignty, an offence punishable by life imprisonment or death. The floating home lived in by an American man and his Thai partner (Royal Thai Navy via AP)

The navy filed a complaint against the couple with police on the southern resort island of Phuket.

Chad Elwartowski said in an email that he believes he and Supranee Thepdet did nothing wrong.

The couple, who have gone into hiding, had been living part-time on a small structure they said was anchored outside Thailand’s territorial waters, just over 12 nautical miles from shore.

Thai authorities said they have revoked Mr Elwartowski’s visa. </s> A fishing ship carrying 600 illegal nets stretching up to 18 miles has been seized after it escaped Chinese authorities, while using the flags of eight different countries to evade capture.

The vessel, STS-50, had targeted a cod species called Antarctic toothfish that plays an important role in the Southern Ocean ecosystem, according to Indonesia‘s fisheries ministry.

Its hundreds of gillnets had walls of fine mesh and could expand to a distance of 18 miles. Gillnetting has been banned in Antarctic waters since 2006 and is described by Australia as posing a “huge risk to almost all marine life, including marine mammals due to [its] indiscriminate nature�?.

We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form your own view. From 15p €0.18 $0.18 USD 0.27 a day, more exclusives, analysis and extras.

The use of the nets also harm seabirds including endangered albatrosses, the country’s environment department said on its website in 2011.

Indonesia was acting on a request from Interpol when it seized the officially stateless craft. It had eluded authorities by flying eight different flags at different times, including those of Sierra Leone, Togo, Cambodia, South Korea, Japan, Micronesia and Namibia, the ministry said in a statement.

Interpol contacted Indonesia last week with a request to investigate the vessel, fisheries minister Susi Pudjiastuti said in the statement.

“Navy ship Simeuleu conducted a ‘stop, investigate and detain’ operation on Friday and successfully seized the vessel,�? she said.

The STS-50 had previously been detained by China, but escaped and was caught in the port of Maputo in Mozambique before fleeing again, Ms Pudjiastuti said.

Prior to its capture off the Indonesian island of Weh in the northwestern province of Aceh, the vessel had also operated under several other names including Sea Breeze, Andrey Dolgov, STD No. 2 and Aida, the statement said.

Shipping data in Thomson Reuters Eikon shows the 54m-long, 452-tonne vessel was built in 1985.

Independent news email Only the best news in your inbox Independent news email Only the best news in your inbox Enter your email address Continue Continue Please enter an email address Email address is invalid Fill out this field Email address is invalid Email already exists. Log in to update your newsletter preferences Register with your social account or click here to log in I would like to receive morning headlines Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts by email Update newsletter preferences

At the time of its capture, the STS-50 had 20 Indonesian and Russian crew, the ministry said. It was not immediately clear what would happen to them.

Navy deputy chief of staff Achmad Taufiqoerrochman was quoted in the statement as saying the Indonesian crew lacked travel documents and had been at sea for a long time without pay, indicating they may have been victims of trafficking.

Fishing for Antarctic toothfish is governed by the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, which forbids gillnet fishing and imposes strict rules on catches in the Southern Ocean.

“We want this to be an example for the world to not compromise with illegal fishing,�? Ms Pudjiastuti said.

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The riots broke out, with a local parliament building being torched, as thousands protested allegations that police tear-gassed and arrested students who supported the restive region's independence. AFP/Getty 23/50 18 August 2019 People survey the destruction after an overnight suicide bomb explosion that targeted a wedding reception in Kabul, Afghanistan. At least 63 people, mostly wedding guests from the Shi'ite Muslim community, were killed and more than 180 injured when a suicide bomber attacked a wedding hall. EPA 24/50 17 August 2019 A man retrieves his prize after climbing up a greased pole during a competition held as part of Independence Day celebrations at Ancol Beach in Jakarta. Indonesia is celebrating its 74th anniversary of independence from the Dutch colonial rule. AP 25/50 16 August 2019 Swiss pianist and composer Alain Roche plays piano suspended in the air at dawn during the 20th "Jeux du Castrum", a multidisciplinary festival in Switzerland. 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The volcano expert said: "The strong lightning which shows in the image is a very rare exception, as it was much stronger than usual." Martin Reitze/SWNS 29/50 12 August 2019 People swim in a public bath pool in Zalakaros, Hungary. Some regions of the country have been issued the highest grade of warning by the National Meteorological Service as the temperatures may reach 33-38 centigrade. EPA 30/50 11 August 2019 A pro-democracy protester is held by police outside Tsim Sha Tsui Police station during a demonstration against the controversial extradition bill in Hong Kong. AFP/Getty 31/50 10 August 2019 Muslim pilgrims make their way down on a rocky hill known as Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, during the annual hajj pilgrimage, near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. AP 32/50 9 August 2019 Waves hit a sea wall in front of buildings in Taizhou, China's eastern Zhejiang province. China issued a red alert for incoming Super Typhoon Lekima which is expected to batter eastern Zhejiang province early on August 10 with high winds and torrential rainfall. AFP/Getty 33/50 8 August 2019 A herder struggles with his flock across a motorway at the city cattle market, ahead of the Eid al-Adha in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Eid al-Adha is the holiest of the two Muslims holidays celebrated each year, it marks the yearly Muslim pilgrimage (Hajj) to visit Mecca, the holiest place in Islam. Muslims slaughter a sacrificial animal and split the meat into three parts, one for the family, one for friends and relatives, and one for the poor and needy. EPA 34/50 7 August 2019 Kazakh servicemen perform during a ceremony opening the International Army Games at the 40th military base Otar in Zhambyl Region, Kazakhstan. Reuters 35/50 6 August 2019 Paleontologist Naturalis Anne Schulp takes part in the construction of the skeleton of the Tyrannosaurus Rex called Trix in Naturalis in Leiden, The Netherlands. After a month-long tour of Europe, Trix is home in time for the opening of the new museum. AFP/Getty 36/50 5 August 2019 Flowers paying tribute to the eight-year-old boy who died after he was pushed under a train at Frankfurt am Main's station. The horrific crime happened last week and has led politicians to call for heightened security. AFP/Getty 37/50 4 August 2019 Mourners take part in a vigil near the border fence between Mexico and the US after a mass shooting at a Walmart store in El Paso killed 20 people. The suspected gunman behind shooting is believed to be a 21-year-old white man called Patrick Crusius. Reuters 38/50 3 August 2019 Pramac Racing's rider Jack Miller in action during a practice session at the Motorcycling Grand Prix of the Czech Republic. The race will take place on 4 August. EPA 39/50 2 August 2019 An extremely rare Pink Meanie jellyfish on display at the Two Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town. The Pink Meanie was discovered during a nightlight jellyfish dive by the collections team in the waters around Robben Island and in Cape Town Harbour. Pink Meanies are jellyvorous, meaning they feed on other jelly species by reeling them in with their long tentacles. Discovering the Pink Meanie in its early ephyra stage meant the team could study its growth rate which turned out to be very quick as it grew to the metaephyra stage in about a week and a half. The Mexican pink meanie (Drymonema larsoni) was only discovered in the year 2000. A Mediterranean relative, known as the Big Pink Jellyfish (Drymonema dalmatinum) has been known to science since the 1800s but when spotted in 2014 it had been almost 70 years since the last sighting. These jellies are incredibly rare and this new South African species is no exception. EPA 40/50 1 August 2019 Palestinian men breathe fire on the beach as entertainment for children during the summer vacation in Gaza City. AFP/Getty 41/50 31 July 2019 A woman rows a boat through the lotus plants on the waters of Dal Lake in Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian Kashmir. The lake is a popular tourist destination because of its floating gardens and lotus flowers. EPA 42/50 30 July 2019 An effigy of demon Ghantakarna is burnt to symbolize the destruction of evil and belief to drive evil spirits and ghost, during the Ghantakarna festival at the ancient city of Bhaktapur, Nepal. Reuters 43/50 29 July 2019 Hundreds of hot air balloons take part in the Great Line at the Mondial Air Ballons festival, in an attempt to break the 2017 record of 456 balloons aligning in an hour during the biggest meeting in the world, in Chambley, France. Reuters 44/50 28 July 2019 Anti-extradition bill protesters with umbrellas attend a rally against the police brutality in Hong Kong. EPA 45/50 27 July 2019 A general view of stalls closed following yesterday's volcanic eruption at the tourism area of Mount Tangkuban Parahu in the north of Bandung, West Java province, Indonesia. Reuters 46/50 26 July 2019 Protesters rally against a controversial extradition bill in the arrivals hall at the international airport in Hong Kong. AFP/Getty 47/50 25 July 2019 The pack rides in a valley during the eighteenth stage of the 106th edition of the Tour de France cycling race between Embrun and Valloire. AFP/Getty 48/50 24 July 2019 Former special counsel Robert Mueller is sworn in to testify before a House Judiciary Committee hearing on the investigation into Russian Interference of the 2016 Presidential Election. Reuters 49/50 23 July 2019 People cool down at the fountains of Trocadero during a heatwave in Paris. EPA 50/50 22 July 2019 Activists burn an effigy of President Rodrigo Duterte, depicted as a sea monster, during a protest near congress. This is to coincide with his state of the nation address in Manila. AFP/Getty

Indonesia has destroyed hundreds of foreign illegal fishing boats since 2014 in an effort to protect domestic fish stocks and fishermen.

In 2016, Indonesia assisted Interpol in the landmark capture of a giant Chinese-flagged vessel that had evaded Argentina’s navy and fled into international waters after it was suspected of illegal fishing there.

The same year, Indonesia sank a giant illegal toothfish fishing vessel that had operated under 12 different names and flown flags of at least eight different countries.

Reuters </s> If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in jail and a fine.

The Phuket Provincial Court yesterday approved arrest warrants for Woralak Rerkchaikan, 26, and the boat’s mechanic, Ornjan Kanhayotee, 56, who is already in custody.

The boat’s captain was arrested immediately after the accident on July 5.

Woralak and Ornjan have been charged with recklessly causing deaths and injuries to others.

The Phoenix, which is operated by TC Blue Dream, allegedly ventured into the sea despite warnings of rough weather conditions.

Although some tourists on board were rescued safely, 47 others drowned.

Woralak, who is married to a Chinese man, owns more than 90 per cent of shares in the firm.

Authorities are examining the company’s business transactions to determine if the firm has used a Thai nominee to operate on Thai soil.

TC Blue Dream has offered Bt100,000 to the family of each deceased victim. They are also entitled to Bt1 million compensation from the Thai government and Bt1 million from insurance firms.

“The alleged use of nominees will have to be investigated because it means a business is using Thailand’s resources without generating real income for Thailand,” Tourist Police deputy commander Pol Maj-General Surachate Hakparn said.

Surachate plans to go to Phuket today to visit three injured victims who are still being treated in hospital, and to discuss the case with China’s consular office in Phuket.

He also planned to hold a meeting with the representatives of tour operators in Phuket and the nearby provinces of Phang Nga and Krabi.

According to Surachate, there are about 400 tour boats in Thailand’s Andaman Sea and the Marine Department, in collaboration with tourist police, will examine all the boats.

“If any boat is found to be substandard, it must be upgraded,” Surachate said.

The chief of the Third Naval Area Command, Vice Admiral Somnuk Prempramote, said his agency would work with the Marine Department and marine police in checking boats of more than 60 gross tonnage at Phuket’s four major piers: Chalong Pier, Rassada, Ao Po Grand Marina and Visit Panwa.

“We will examine boat conditions and the readiness of boat captains. We will also do head counts,” he said.

He added that officials would also make sure that diving tours had one diving master per four tourists for maximum safety. Agencies would also conduct boat patrols to issue early warnings and provide timely help if anything happens, he said. </s> CHINA'S HERE. One of the Chinese ships spotted near Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal), September 3, 2016. Photo courtesy Philippine Department of Defense

VIENTIANE, Laos (UPDATED) – Beijing came under pressure at an Asian summit on Wednesday, September 7, over its "illegal" island building in the South China Sea, after the Philippines produced evidence it said showed fresh construction activity at a flashpoint shoal.

An artificial island at Scarborough Shoal could be a game changer in China's quest to control the sea and raises the risk of armed confrontation with the United States, according to security analysts.

Beijing this week insisted it had not started building at the shoal – a move that could lead to a military outpost just 230 kilometers (140 miles) from the main Philippine island, where US forces are stationed.

But the Philippines on Wednesday released images it said showed Chinese ships in the area that were capable of dredging sand and other activities required to build an artificial island.

"We have reason to believe that their presence is a precursor to building activities on the shoal," defense department spokesman Arsenio Andolong told Agence France-Presse.

"We are continuing our surveillance and monitoring of their presence and activities, which are disturbing."

China claims nearly all of the sea, through which $5 trillion in shipping trade passes annually, even waters approaching the coasts of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations.

The competing territorial claims have long been a major source of tension in the region, with China using deadly force twice to seize control of islands from Vietnam.

Illegal island building

A ship of the China Coast Guard near Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal), September 3, 2016. Photo courtesy Philippine Department of Defense

Tensions have escalated sharply in recent years as China has built islands on reefs and islets in the Spratlys archipelago – another strategically important location – that are capable of supporting military operations.

The United States has reacted to that build-up by sailing warships close to the new islands, and sending warplanes over them, deeply angering China.

A UN-backed tribunal ruled in July that China's claims to most of the sea had no legal basis and its construction of artificial islands in the disputed waters was illegal.

But Beijing vowed to ignore the ruling.

China took control of Scarborough shoal in 2012 after a standoff with the Philippine Navy, and has since deployed large fishing fleets while blocking Filipino fishermen.

Expanding that presence with a military outpost is vital to achieving China's ambitions of controlling the sea, according to security analysts.

US officials fear a Chinese military airfield at the shoal would enable Beijing to enforce a threatened air defence identification zone in the sea.

An outpost at the shoal would also put Chinese fighter jets and missiles within easy striking distance of US forces stationed in the Philippines.

US President Barack Obama reportedly directly warned his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, during a meeting in March not to push ahead with any artificial island building there.

Conflict risk

Another Chinese ship near Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal), September 3, 2016. Photo courtesy Philippine Department of Defense

The United States, which is a treaty ally of the Philippines, has repeatedly said it does not want to fight a war over the shoal.

But military skirmishes cannot be ruled out if China does start to build an island, according to security analysts.

"We could witness a physical confrontation between Chinese Coast Guard and Filipino vessels backed up by the US Navy," Carl Thayer, an emeritus professor at Australia's University of New South Wales, told AFP.

An Obama aide on Wednesday played down the significance of the Philippine photos, telling reporters the United States had not detected any unusual activity at Scarborough Shoal.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte had said he did not want to anger China by highlighting the territorial row at the summit of regional leaders in Laos this week.

But the release of the photos came just a few hours before Duterte and other leaders from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations met China's Li, in what his spokesman said was a deliberate move.

The Philippines and Singapore, which this year is ASEAN's lead negotiator with China, raised the dispute during the meeting.

"What was underlined... was the importance of the rule of law and adhering to international bodies," Duterte's spokesman, Martin Andanar, told reporters in Vientiane.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also called on China to abide by the tribunal's ruling, emphasising in his meeting with ASEAN leaders that the verdict was legally binding.

Obama is also in Laos for the regional meetings, which will conclude on Thursday with an East Asia summit.

But the US president cancelled his planned meeting with Duterte, during which the sea issue was to be discussed, after the volatile Philippine president called him a "son of a whore." – Rappler.com </s> Beijing's "illegal" island building in the South China Sea moved centre stage at an Asian summit Wednesday after the Philippines produced evidence it said showed fresh construction activity at a flashpoint shoal.

An artificial island at Scarborough Shoal could be a game changer in China's quest to control the sea and raises the risk of armed confrontation with the United States, according to security analysts.

Beijing this week insisted it had not started building at the shoal -- a move that could lead to a military outpost just 230 kilometres (140 miles) from the main Philippine island, where US forces are stationed.

But the Philippines on Wednesday released images it said showed Chinese ships in the area that were capable of dredging sand and other activities required to build an artificial island.

"We have reason to believe that their presence is a precursor to building activities on the shoal," defence department spokesman Arsenio Andolong told AFP.

"We are continuing our surveillance and monitoring of their presence and activities, which are disturbing."

China claims nearly all of the sea, through which $5 trillion in shipping trade passes annually, even waters approaching the coasts of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations.

The competing territorial claims have long been a major source of tension in the region, with China using deadly force twice to seize control of islands from Vietnam.

Tensions have escalated sharply in recent years as China has built islands on reefs and islets in the Spratlys archipelago -- another strategically important location -- that are capable of supporting military operations.

The United States has reacted to that build-up by sailing warships close to the new islands, and sending warplanes over them.

This has deeply angered China, which has accused the Americans of "militarising the region", and raised concerns of armed conflict between the two world powers.

A UN-backed tribunal ruled in July that China's claims to most of the sea had no legal basis and its construction of artificial islands in the disputed waters was illegal.

But Beijing vowed to ignore the ruling.

China took control of Scarborough shoal in 2012 after a standoff with the Philippine Navy, and has since deployed large fishing fleets while blocking Filipino fishermen.

Expanding that presence with a military outpost is vital to achieving China's ambitions of controlling the sea, according to security analysts.

US officials fear a Chinese military airfield at the shoal would enable China to enforce a threatened air defence identification zone in the sea.

Another major concern is it allows China a military base close to where US forces regularly operate on the Philippine main island of Luzon.

US President Barack Obama reportedly directly warned his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, during a meeting in March not to push ahead with any artificial island building there.

The United States, which is a treaty ally of the Philippines, has repeatedly said it does not want to fight a war over the shoal.

But military confrontation can not be ruled out if China does start to build an island, according to security analysts.

"We could witness a physical confrontation between Chinese Coast Guard and Filipino vessels backed up by the US Navy," Carl Thayer, an emeritus professor at Australia's University of New South Wales, told AFP.

An Obama aide on Wednesday played down the significance of the Philippine photos, telling reporters the United States had not detected any unusual activity at Scarborough Shoal.

When pressed on initial Philippine accusations on Monday before the photos were released, China insisted there were no dredging boats or others to prepare for island building.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte had said he did not want to anger China by highlighting the territorial row at the summit of regional leaders in Laos this week.

But the release of the photos came just a few hours before Duterte and other leaders from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations met China's Li.

Also on Wednesday, the Philipppine coast guard announced that United States is giving Manila two used military aircraft, to help expand sea patrols in the face of territorial disputes with China.

The two Sherpa 30-seater aircraft will be delivered in December, Philippine coast guard spokesman Commander Armand Balilo told AFP.

"It will help us in the movements of the Philippine Coast Guard like patrol missions," Balilo added.

Obama is also in Laos for the regional meetings, which will conclude on Thursday with an East Asia summit.
The Royal Thai Navy is planning to remove a house that was allegedly constructed illegally 12 mi (19.31 km) off the Thai coastline to promote seasteading. The owners had planned to start a community of at least 20 houses in the area. Thai authorities have filed a complaint, which if prosecuted could carry a death sentence for "threatening the sovereignty of a state, and erosion of a state's independence".