Balabac Island
Balabac Island is the southernmost island of the Palawan province, and therefore the westernmost undisputed island in the Philippines, only about 50 kilometers (31 mi) north from Sabah, Malaysia, across the Balabac Strait.
Balabac island satellite image captured by Sentinel-2 in 2016 | |
Balabac Island Location within Palawan | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Balabac Strait |
| Coordinates | 7°56′31″N 117°0′29″E |
| Archipelago | Balabac Group of Islands |
| Adjacent to |
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| Highest elevation | 1,867 ft (569.1 m) |
| Highest point | Balabac Peak |
| Administration | |
Philippines | |
| Region | Mimaropa |
| Province | Palawan |
| Municipality | Balabac |
| Additional information | |
The island borders the West Philippine Sea, a portion of the South China Sea, and therefore borders the area of the territorial disputes in the South China Sea among the Philippines and particularly mainland China, but also including the Republic of China (Taiwan), Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei. Balabac is close to Panganiban Reef (Mischief Reef), which the mainland Chinese government occupied in 1995 and subsequently turned into one of its largest artificial islands within the what the Philippines considers its 370 kilometres (230 mi) exclusive economic zone. Balabac hosts Naval Station Narciso Del Rosario of the Philippine Navy and will host the United States Military under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).