Ruling legally ‘binding’: US

‘Abide by result’

WASHINGTON, July 12, (AFP): The United States put itself on a collision course with great power rival China on Tuesday, describing a ruling against Beijing’s South China Sea claims as “final and legally binding.”

Washington had carefully avoided taking a stance on the suit lodged by the Philippines against China’s maritime territorial claims, but when judgment came down, it urged both sides to abide by the result.

“The United States expresses its hope and expectation that both parties will comply with their obligations,” State Department spokesman John Kirby said. Beijing has already rejected the ruling out of hand.

Earlier, a UN-backed tribunal in The Hague — the Permanent Court of Arbitration — ruled that China has no historic rights to resources within the sea areas falling within the so-called “nine-dash-line”.

The United States has no claims of its own within this three-millionsquare-kilometer (1.2-millionsquare-mile) patch of sea, but has asserted the right of all shipping to pass through areas it regards as international waters.

And Washington is an ally of the Southeast Asian countries which do dispute China’s claim, including the Philippines, which lodged the international suit.

Kirby

Goal

“The decision today by the tribunal in the Philippines-China arbitration is an important contribution to the shared goal of a peaceful resolution to disputes in the South China Sea,” Kirby said.

US officials are “studying the decision and have no comment on the merits of the case,” he added, but nevertheless asserted the right of the tribunal to make its ruling and said it should be respected.

“The United States strongly supports the rule of law. We support efforts to resolve territorial and maritime disputes in the South China Sea peacefully, including through arbitration,” he said.

“As provided in the Convention, the tribunal’s decision is final and legally binding on both China and the Philippines,” he added, urging all claimants “to avoid provocative statements or actions.”

But Beijing had already reacted furiously, saying it “neither accepts nor recognizes” the ruling.

The resource-rich, strategically vital waters of the South China Sea are disputed between the Asian giant — which claims almost all of them on the basis of a “nine-dash line” that first appeared on Chinese maps in the 1940s — and several other countries including the Philippines.

The row has embroiled the United States, which has deployed aircraft carriers and a host of other vessels to assert freedom of navigation in waters through which onethird of the global oil trade passes.

China says that its fishermen have visited the area for centuries, but the PCA tribunal said that under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Beijing had not had exclusive control of it.

The official news agency Xinhua cited President Xi Jinping as saying the islands have been Chinese territory since ancient times, and Beijing will not accept any action based on the decision.

The Philippines welcomes a ruling by a UN-backed tribunal on Tuesday that declares China has no “historic rights” in the South China Sea, Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay said, as he urged restraint.

“The Philippines welcomes the issuance today... on the arbitration proceedings initiated by the Philippines with regard to the South China Sea,” Yasay told reporters minutes after the court in The Hague released its verdict.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration said the tribunal ruled there was no legal basis for China to claim “historic rights” to resources within the South China Sea falling within its claimed nine-dash line, which is based on a Chinese map dating back to the 1940s.

“Our experts are studying the award with the care and thoroughness that this significant arbitral outcome deserves. In the meantime, we call on all those concerned to exercise restraint and sobriety,” Yasay said.

“The Philippines strongly affirms its respect for this milestone decision as an important contribution to ongoing efforts in addressing disputes in the South China Sea.”

He added the decision upheld international law, particularly the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.