On Sunday, the United States, the United Kingdom, and other Western and Asian nations reaffirmed that China’s extensive claims over the South China Sea are illegal. This assertion aligns with a 2016 arbitration ruling, which those countries upheld in a joint statement. They rejected any destabilizing actions in the contested waters that threaten regional stability.
The European Union, consisting of 27 countries, issued a separate statement calling the ruling a ‘historic decision in the peaceful resolution of disputes.’ On July 12, 2016, a tribunal set up in The Hague under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea delivered this landmark ruling, emphasizing its definitive and legally binding nature.
China maintained on Sunday that the ruling is ‘null and void and has no binding force,’ and stated that Beijing neither accepts nor recognizes it. China opted out of the arbitration initiated by the Philippines in 2013, which followed a tense standoff in the disputed waters a year earlier, resulting in Beijing’s de facto control over a disputed sandbank.
The 2016 ruling largely favored the Philippines; it found no legal basis for China’s historical rights claims in the South China Sea beyond its internationally recognized territorial waters. This convention, the primary treaty governing world oceans and seas, has been in effect since 1994 and ratified by over 170 parties, including China and the Philippines.
Aside from the US and UK, nations that supported the statement include the Philippines, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Germany, Italy, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, and Slovenia. They emphasized their firm opposition to destabilizing actions, whether by force or coercion, threatening regional peace and stability.
The countries highlighted their objection to coast guard, military, or maritime militia forces harassing legitimate state operations, endangering personnel, and affecting regional safety. They upheld the necessity of freedom of navigation and overflight, and advocated for peaceful resolution of territorial disputes based on the 1982 UN convention.
In Beijing, China’s Foreign Ministry deemed the tribunal and ruling contradictory to common international arbitration practices, infringing upon China’s sovereign rights. The ministry stressed China’s opposition and non-acceptance of claims or actions based on this ruling and mentioned Beijing’s rejection of third-party dispute resolutions or imposed solutions.
Territorial confrontations have increased recently, often involving Chinese, Philippine, and Vietnamese forces and fishing fleets. Chinese coast guard and support vessels have deployed water cannons, military lasers, and hazardous blocking maneuvers against Philippine forces and fishermen from rival claimant countries, leading to collisions at sea and high-risk aerial encounters.
The US has consistently urged China to adhere to the arbitration ruling. The governments under Presidents Biden and Trump stated that Washington remains committed to defending the Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, should Philippine forces, vessels, or aircraft face armed attacks in disputed waters.