modification

We have seen that the basic meaning of the Past tense in English is to locate an event or state in the past. It situate the event at a ‘temporal distance’ from the moment of speaking, whether in time, towards the past, or with regard to potential or hypothetical events which have not yet occurred in the present or the future.
(Angela Downing, English Grammar: A University Course)

What does the highlighted part modify?

I think that should be:

It situates the event at a ‘temporal distance’ from the moment of speaking, whether in time, towards the past, or with regard to potential or hypothetical events which have not yet occurred in the present or the future.


I'd say that it was 'situates' that's being modified. [It either situates in time, or with regard to potential .... ]