PH asks China to respect sea dispute arbitration

THE PHILIPPINES on Monday urged China to respect a forthcoming ruling by an arbitration court in The Hague on a territorial dispute in the South China Sea after Beijing accused Manila of “political provocation.”

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, believed to have huge deposits of oil and gas. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims on the waters, through which about $5 trillion in trade is shipped every year.

China refuses to recognize the case lodged by the Philippines with the tribunal and says all disputes should be resolved through bilateral talks.

“The Philippines, as well as the international community, is asking China to respect the forthcoming ruling of the arbitral tribunal and together advance an international rules-based regime,” Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said in a statement in Manila. “If China does not heed our collective call, does it mean that China considers itself above the law?”

The tribunal’s ruling was expected before May, said Del Rosario. Manila and Beijing had met several times to discuss maritime disputes but nothing had been resolved, he added.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei repeated on Monday that China would not participate in the case. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, on a visit to the United States last week, accused the Philippines of “political provocation” in seeking arbitration to resolve the dispute.

“We note that Foreign Minister Wang said that China is a member of the international community and that it abides by international law,” Del Rosario said in a statement.

He reminded Wang of the countless meetings the Philippines had with China to address the issue between the two countries.

“To no avail. We have invited China many times to join us in arbitration as early as 2012, again to no avail,” Del Rosario said.

Wang held talks last week with his counterpart, US Secretary of State John Kerry, who said China was rapidly militarizing the waterway after building artificial islands and deploying fighters and missiles.