Manila: The Philippines move to bring before a UN arbitration body its dispute with China over sea territories has undermined relations between the two Asian neighbours, China said.
In a lengthy response to a “memorial” tendered by Philippines Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario last March 30 before the UN Arbitral Tribunal concerning overlapping claims of China and Manila over sea territories in the West Philippines Sea (South China Sea), Chinese Embassy Spokesman Zhang Hua clarified certain points on the matter involving the two countries.
“The Philippines’ initiation of and push for international arbitration has undermined China-Philippines relations,” Zhang argued.
Zhang said Manila had not consulted Beijing before it made the move to bring the issue before the Arbitral Tribunal.
“Under normal circumstances, submission of dispute to international arbitration requires an agreement reached between the two parties concerned. Yet, the Philippine side had failed to notify the Chinese side, not to mention seeking China’s consent, before it actually initiated the arbitration,” Zhang said adding that this move by Manila “did serious damage bilateral relations with China.”
The Philippines, in its bid to bring a closure to issues involving jurisdiction over several islands in the South China Sea close or within the 250 kilometre distance from the country’s main island, had taken to the Arbitral Tribunal its issue with China.
China is claiming most of the portions of the South China Sea, including all of the Spratlys islands (referred to by China as Nansha) as well as the Ayungin Reef, which is known internationally as the Second Thomas Shoal.
Ayungin Reef is located less than 100 kilometre from the nearest cost in the Philippine mainland.
The two countries had figured in an incident last week as an unarmed Philippine commercial vessel defied Chinese Coast Guard restrictions and entered restricted sea territory to send supplies to a handful of marines garrisoned in an abandoned navy vessel the BRP Sierra Madre.
Zhang admitted that Manila’s move to bring the issue to the Arbitral Tribunal had got China worried.
“We find it very hard to understand these moves of the Philippines and we are deeply disturbed by and concerned with the consequence of such moves,” Zhang warned.
Zhang said Manila should have not brought the issue before the Tribunal.
“First, China is committed to resolving its disputes with the Philippines through bilateral negotiations. China and the Philippines have between them territorial and maritime disputes. And it is just natural that disputes might exist between neighbours. What is important is how to resolve the disputes,” Zhang said.
Zhang also argued that China and the Philippines had already agreed in September 2011 to address disputes through peaceful dialogue.
China had insisted that it has historic rights over the disputed sea territory.
Zhang said that contrary to Manila’s claims that it is illegally occupying islands in the South China Sea, it is the Philippines that is doing such.
“At the beginning of the 1970s, the Philippine side started to make territorial claims on certain islands and reefs of China’s Nansha Islands. In violation of the Charter of the United Nations and the basic norms governing international relations, the Philippine side conducted military operations four times respectively in 1970, 1971, 1978 and 1980, and illegally occupied eight Chinese islands and reefs,” Zhang said.
