The Congressional bicameral conference committee has approved the baselines bill that puts the Scarborough Shoal and the Kalayaan Group of Islands under Philippine territory.

House foreign affairs committee chairman Antonio Cuenco said Monday the baseline bill will reinforce the Philippines' claims on areas to which China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei are also claiming ownership of.

"In the final Senate version, they followed our advise that aside from the word ‘regime of islands’, that we would incorporate the phrase 'Republic of the Philippines', in other words a ‘regime of islands’ under the ‘Republic of the Philippines’. So that's a safety valve to ensure that our claim to the Kalayaan Group of Islands, as well as Scarborough will always be protected," said Cuenco.

Members of the bicameral conference committee will meet next week to sign the final version of the baselines bill.-- report from ANC