Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reiterated China's firm position on the South China Sea arbitration case during the ASEAN Plus foreign ministers' meetings on Friday, emphasizing legal and diplomatic principles while addressing regional stability.
Legal Flaws in Arbitration Case
Wang criticized the Philippines-initiated arbitration as lacking legal validity, noting it bypassed prior consultations required under the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC). He stressed that territorial sovereignty disputes, such as those involving the Nansha Islands, fall outside the jurisdiction of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Questioning Tribunal's Legitimacy
The foreign minister highlighted that China's 2006 declaration under UNCLOS explicitly excluded maritime delimitation from compulsory arbitration—a stance shared by four of the five UN Security Council permanent members. Wang accused the arbitral tribunal of overstepping its mandate, undermining international maritime law, and misclassifying Taiping Island as a 'rock' to invalidate its maritime rights.
Regional Stability and External Interference
Wang attributed tensions to 'forces outside the region' seeking to disrupt peace, while praising China-ASEAN collaboration in maintaining navigation freedoms and advancing a Code of Conduct. 'Any attempt to sow discord will fail,' he declared, underscoring commitments to dialogue over confrontation.
