While the European Union is neutral in China’s dispute with its Asian neighbors in the South China Sea, Britain, France and Germany want to make clear that Beijing must uphold worldwide law as it seeks a bigger global role.
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“Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told Chinese Premier Li Keqiang that a rules-based global order must be respected”, Kyodo said, quoting a senior Japanese official.
Croatia and Slovenia have their own maritime dispute and are anxious about setting precedents by coming out too strongly in favour or against the court in The Hague that ruled on the South China Sea case, the Permanent Court of Arbitration.
Li made the remarks in a meeting with Abe on the sidelines of the ongoing 11th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit in Ulan Bator, and urged both sides to find ways to properly manage their differences.
“The sovereignty issue is China’s bottom line”, Yang, China’s top diplomat, said in an interview with Chinese media on the ruling.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Arrmanatha Nasir said despite it being a current issue relevant to numerous participants, the South China Sea dispute was not included on the main agenda of the ASEM summit. The arbitration court’s ruling “is legally binding and must be respected by all parties”, he said in a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe underlined the importance of the rule of law and a peaceful resolution. Merkel said the European Union is now debating how to react to the ruling. Tusk explained that he had asked Chinese President Xi Jinping to abide by the ruling at an earlier meeting.
“The EU calls upon the parties concerned to address remaining and further related issues through negotiations and other peaceful means and refrain from activities likely to raise tensions”, Mogherini said.
The Philippines will concede nothing to China after an worldwide tribunal outlawed Beijing’s claims to most of the South China Sea, a Filipino official said Friday.
Abe agreed with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc that the rule of law contributes to peace and stability in the region.
Speaking at a meeting of Asian and European officials in Mongolia, Philippine Foreign Minister Perfecto Yasay said Manila “strongly affirms its respect for the milestone decision” while reiterating his call for “restraint and sobriety”. Beijing has refused to acknowledge the first worldwide ruling over the disputed waters.
The timing of the release coincides with the ongoing Asia-Europe Meeting Summit (ASEM) in Mongolia which, in addition to representatives from European Union and ASEAN, is also attended by a number of claimant countries to the disputed region.
The two-day colloquium, organized by Hong Kong International Arbitration Center and Chinese Society of International Law, attracted over 200 law experts from countries including China, the United States, Australia and France, among others, to discuss issues concerning maritime dispute settlements.
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Beijing had hoped to use the Asem summit – official theme “Partnership for the Future through Connectivity” – as an opportunity to showcase its global initiatives, such as the One Belt, One Road programme, an ambitious plan to build infrastructure projects across the Eurasian region.
