Liu urged other countries not to “take the opportunity to threaten China”, and called on other countries to work with China to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea. It also said China had breached the Philippines’ sovereign rights by endangering its ships, damaging the marine environment and building on islands and reefs.
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China asserts sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea waters in the face of rival claims from its southeast Asian neighbours.
A US aircraft carrier strike group and other vessels have been patrolling the South China Sea, and China began naval exercises near the disputed Paracel Islands last week.
Members of the Phillippine coastguard pose as pirates while Japan Coast Guard sails past during the Joint Maritime Law Enforcement Exercise off Manila Bay, Philippines, July 13, 2016.
This tough approach can send a message to other countries that suing China at The Hague’s “illegal tribunal” will only lead to a tougher response from Beijing, Song said, adding that tensions in the disputed waters will rise, and China should prepare for the worst.
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A top Beijing official has accused United Nations judges of accepting cash from the Philippines after they ruled against their territorial claims to disputed islands in the South China Sea.
“China will react by trying to, in effect, harden their position on Scarborough Shoal by starting a process of militarization, dredging and generally turning Scarborough into the kind of outpost of Chinese power”, Ott says.
Earlier, the court in The Hague issued the ruling on the case brought by the Philippines against China’s nine-dash line claim in the East Sea.
Hilbay particularly referred to the structures China built on areas of the West Philippine Sea.
An air defense identification zone over the sea would give the Chinese military authority over foreign aircraft. “The threat or the use of force in resolving conflict will not going to, will not resolve, in fact it will even contribute to the deterioration of peace and security, and we can not afford that”, said Marciano DeBorja, the Philippine consul general. Taiwan responded by sending a warship to the area. Beijing has rejected the verdict outright, saying it “neither accepts nor recognises it”. Its derisive dismissal of the tribunal’s verdict now is untenable.
Chinese rhetoric against the tribunal had ratcheted up in the weeks leading up to the decision.
Taiwan’s President vowed to defend its sovereignty over Taiping Island.
Reuters asks whether Washington can prevent war in southeast Asia.
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While blaming the previous Philippine government for complicating the dispute by seeking arbitration, Liu said China remains committed to negotiations with the Philippines and noted new Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s positive remarks on the issue. That “claim” has been at the heart of the dispute between China and India.
