Beijing censures Manila over South China Sea lawsuit
Iran Press TV
Sun Dec 7, 2014 3:46PM GMT
China has blasted the Philippines for challenging Beijing's maritime claims over the South China Sea through international arbitration.
In a position paper published by China's Foreign Ministry on Sunday, Beijing expressed its objection to a formal plea filed in March by Manila with a United Nations tribunal calling into question China's territorial claims over the disputed waters.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague has given Beijing until December 15 to reply to the case, which argues that the Chinese claims concerning the South China Sea lack legal basis.
"Its underlying goal is not...to seek peaceful resolution of the South China Sea issue, but rather, by resorting to arbitration, to put political pressure on China, so as to deny China's lawful rights in the South China Sea through the so-called 'interpretation or application' of the Convention,' the position paper said.
Charles Jose, the spokesman for the Philippine department of foreign affairs, said Manila is studying China's position paper.
Meanwhile, Xu Hong, director general of the Chinese Foreign Ministry's department for treaty and law, stressed Beijing's position to settle disputes bilaterally.
"The Philippines is keenly aware of the importance of addressing the issue through peaceful negotiations. But it still unilaterally initiated a compulsory dispute settlement procedure,' he said.
China claims sovereignty over almost the whole of the South China Sea, which is also claimed in part by Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. The waters are believed to sit atop vast reserves of oil and gas.
SSM/HMV/SS
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
