The Vice-Foreign Minister of China, Liu Zhenmin says the country has the right to set up an air defence zone over territory it claims in the South China Sea.
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“We hope to work with countries surrounding the South China Sea, including ASEAN members, abide by the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, and maintain peace and stability as well as the freedom of navigation and overflight”, Liu said.
India’s reaction came after the tribunal ruled that China has no legal basis to its claims of “historic rights” to islands in South China Sea, through which Dollars 3 trillion passes in trade annually.
After Tuesday’s landmark result on the South China Sea, U.S. officials encouraged other Southeast Asian nations to follow the Philippines’ example.
Mr Duterte has adopted a more conciliatory approach than his predecessor Benigno Aquino, saying the Philippines would be willing to share natural resources with China in contested areas if the tribunal ruled in its favour.
Taiwan has ruled out the possibility of cross-strait cooperation on the South China Sea issue after the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague handed down its ruling on the disputes in the area that has been considered unfavorable to China.
On January 22, 2013, the Philippines filed a lawsuit with the PCA against China’s claims to sovereign right, jurisdiction and historic rights over waters within the nine-dash line, which run counter to the 1982 UNCLOS and exceed the limits of China’s maritime entitlements under the convention.
She also told ABC radio on Wednesday that China’s reputation would suffer as a result of the court ruling, insisting relations with the global community were crucial to its rise as a superpower.
Reuters is reporting that the United States is quietly trying to persuade the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam and other Asian nations not to move aggressively to capitalize on the ruling.
However, he warned opponents to “not turn the South China Sea into a cradle of war”.
He also said China may introduce an air defence zone over the sea, which would give its military authority over foreign aircraft, depending on the “threat” level.
A defiant China today successfully tested two new airfields in the disputed islands in the South China Sea, a day after an worldwide tribunal struck down Beijing claims over the area.
China’s ambassador to the United States, Cui Tiankai, was even more blunt about the tribunal’s ruling.
Staff hang up copies of maps dating from the Qing Dynasty purporting to back up China’s claims to vast parts of the South China Sea, in Hong Kong Thursday, July.
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Tokyo was quick to support the court’s decision and “expects that the parties’ compliance with this award will eventually lead to the peaceful settlement of disputes in the South China Sea”.
