China yesterday rejected an arbitration tribunal’s ruling giving it six months to respond to a case filed by the Philippines over disputed waters, saying it has no plans to take part.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, rejecting rival claims to parts from Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei in one of Asia’s most intractable disputes and a possible flashpoint. It also has a separate maritime dispute with Japan over islands in the East China Sea.
The tribunal in The Hague gave Beijing until Dec. 15 to reply to the first international case filed against China related to the energy-rich waters.
In giving China time to respond to the Philippines’ filing, which questioned the validity of Beijing’s so-called “nine-dash” claim, the tribunal was fulfilling its obligation to assure “each party a full opportunity to be heard and to present its case,” it said in a statement on Tuesday.
China has said all along it will not participate in the arbitration proceedings, preferring a bilateral approach to resolve the conflicts.
“China’s stance of not accepting and not participating in the relevant Philippines’ arbitration case has not changed,” Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Hong Lei (洪磊) told reporters yesterday.
The tribunal suggested it would continue hearing the Philippine complaint even without China’s involvement.
“The arbitral tribunal will determine the further course of the proceedings, including the need for, and scheduling of any other written submissions and hearings, at an appropriate later stage, after seeking the views of the parties,” it said.
Manila is seeking confirmation of its right to exploit waters in a 200 nautical mile (370km) exclusive economic zone as allowed under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, its lawyers have said.
“We continue to urge China to reconsider its decision not to participate in the arbitration proceedings,” said Charles Jose, spokesman for the Philippine Foreign Affairs Department.
“We also wish to reiterate that arbitration is a peaceful, open and friendly resolution mechanism that offers a durable solution to the disputes in the South China Sea,” he said.
The US has said it supports the Philippines’ arbitration case, closely watched by other claimant states, including Vietnam, which said last month it was considering legal action against China after Beijing moved an oil rig into waters claimed by Hanoi.
Additional reporting by AP and staff writer
Taiwanese actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has died of pneumonia at the age of 48 while on a trip to Japan, where she contracted influenza during the Lunar New Year holiday, her sister confirmed today through an agent. "Our whole family came to Japan for a trip, and my dearest and most kindhearted sister Barbie Hsu died of influenza-induced pneumonia and unfortunately left us," Hsu's sister and talk show hostess Dee Hsu (徐熙娣) said. "I was grateful to be her sister in this life and that we got to care for and spend time with each other. I will always be grateful to
UNITED: The premier said Trump’s tariff comments provided a great opportunity for the private and public sectors to come together to maintain the nation’s chip advantage The government is considering ways to assist the nation’s semiconductor industry or hosting collaborative projects with the private sector after US President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 100 percent tariff on chips exported to the US, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. Trump on Monday told Republican members of the US Congress about plans to impose sweeping tariffs on semiconductors, steel, aluminum, copper and pharmaceuticals “in the very near future.” “It’s time for the United States to return to the system that made us richer and more powerful than ever before,” Trump said at the Republican Issues Conference in Miami, Florida. “They
REMINDER: Of the 6.78 million doses of flu vaccine Taiwan purchased for this flu season, about 200,000 are still available, an official said, following Big S’ death As news broke of the death of Taiwanese actress and singer Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛), also known as Big S (大S), from severe flu complications, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and doctors yesterday urged people at high risk to get vaccinated and be alert to signs of severe illness. Hsu’s family yesterday confirmed that the actress died on a family holiday in Japan due to pneumonia during the Lunar New Year holiday. CDC Deputy Director-General Tseng Shu-hui (曾淑慧) told an impromptu news conference that hospital visits for flu-like illnesses from Jan. 19 to Jan. 25 reached 162,352 — the highest
TAIWAN DEFENSE: The initiative would involve integrating various systems in a fast-paced manner through the use of common software to obstruct a Chinese invasion The first tranche of the US Navy’s “Replicator” initiative aimed at obstructing a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would be ready by August, a US Naval Institute (USNI) News report on Tuesday said. The initiative is part of a larger defense strategy for Taiwan, and would involve launching thousands of uncrewed submarines, surface vessels and aerial vehicles around Taiwan to buy the nation and its partners time to assemble a response. The plan was first made public by the Washington Post in June last year, when it cited comments by US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue
RSS