An unnamed spokesman for the supreme court told Xinhua that the new interpretation would support government departments in legally performing maritime-management duties, and safeguard Chinese territorial sovereignty and maritime interests.
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The United States has said it will continue naval patrols close to reefs and outcrops claimed by China to assert the principle of freedom of navigation, a move which has angered Beijing.
Japan, in its annual defense white paper, expressed “concern” over increased Chinese activities in the East China Sea region.
An worldwide arbitration panel’s decision on the contested waters of the South China Sea so far is fueling regional tensions rather than tamping them down.
The Hague ruled that China has no legal basis to claim historic rights to the bulk of the South China Sea, in which $5 trillion worth of shipborne trade passes through each year and is potentially rich in oil and natural gas.
The UN-backed tribunal denied China’s claims to an EEZ in the Spratly Islands, where the Chinese coastguard regularly expels fishing vessels from the Philippines.
Also Tuesday, China’s Supreme Court said people caught illegally fishing in Chinese waters could be jailed for up to a year, issuing a judicial interpretation defining those waters as including the country’s exclusive economic zones.
“China is strongly dissatisfied with Japan’s 2016 defence white paper over its groundless accusations against China’s defence development and military activities”, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said in a statement.
The Japanese defence report claimed that increased activity in the East China Sea had prompted Tokyo to scramble warplanes more than 570 times previous year.
“This is definitely a priority issue that we will have to resolve in our talks with China”, Jose said in a phone interview.
“North Korea’s military activity has increased tensions on the Korean Peninsula, and become a grave and imminent threat not only to Japan but also to the security in the region and the global society”, the report said.
It claims Australia is willing to “do anything in a show of allegiance” for the U.S., but was more than willing to turn its back on China, its biggest trade partner, when there was no economic gain.
While the United States has not taken an official position on the South China Sea, China’s expansion in the region is seen as a direct threat to the USA military dominance in the Pacific.
It also upheld the Philippines’ rights over the area claimed by Manila.
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Japan’s white paper also highlighted concerns over North Korea’s nuclear programme, saying it was possible it has “achieved the miniaturisation of nuclear weapons and has developed nuclear warheads”.
