The Republic of China (Taiwan) has held Taiping Island, the largest island in the Spratly Islands, for more than 60 years and has never had a military conflict with another country in the South China Sea, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Saturday.
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The mission was part of the so-called freedom of navigation campaign, in which the U.S. is seeking to assert its right to freely sail in the South China Sea.
After the United States navy warship the Curtis Wilbur sailed within 12 nautical miles of Triton Island – part of the Paracel Island chain – on Saturday Defence Minister Marise Payne stated Australia’s support for the American manoeuvre, which sparked an angry response from Beijing. “All maritime claims must comply with global law”.
According to official Chinese data, the South China Sea covers 3.55 million square km.
Notes This chart doesn’t include claims by Brunei.
The U.S. doesn’t take a position on the territorial disputes over the island.
Through these concrete actions, Ma said the ROC aims to demonstrate to the global community that the country is committed to fulfilling its worldwide obligations, so as to turn the South China Sea into one of peace and cooperation. In May 2014, China parked a huge oil drilling platform off the Vietnamese coast in the area, prompting Vietnam to send fishing boats and coast guard vessels to harass the rig and nearby Chinese vessels. China says virtually the entire South China Sea and its islands, reefs and atolls are its sovereign territory, although five other regional governments have overlapping claims.
China’s foreign ministry didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The island is administrated by China, but is also contested by Taiwan and Vietnam.
“The excessive claims regarding Triton Island are inconsistent with worldwide law as reflected in the Law of the Sea Convention”.
“I believe the Lassen did challenge some of China’s claims”, Harris said during a presentation at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. China has been hauling massive amounts of sand and other material to build on reefs and other features, setting up landing strips.
He added that no matter what provocations the United States side may take, Chinese armed forces will take whatever measures are necessary to safeguard China’s sovereignity and security.
Davis clarified that the latest freedom of navigation patrol was an “innocent passage”, meant to challenge policies by both China and Vietnam that require vessels transiting the 12 nautical mile territorial waters of features in the Paracels to first notify maritime authorities. He said the U.S. took no position on competing sovereignty claims to naturally formed land features in the South China Sea.
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Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou (C) reads a document on a C-130 airplane on the way to the disputed Itu Aba or Taiping island in the South China Sea, January 28, 2016.
