China reiterates to resolve territorial disputes via bilateral negotiations (2)

On Jan. 22, however, the Philippines publicly stated that the purpose for initiating the arbitration was to bring to "a durable solution" the Philippines-China disputes in the South China Sea.

"These statements are simply self-contradictory," said the spokeswoman, adding that by initiating the arbitration on the basis of its illegal occupation of China's islands and reefs, the Philippines has distorted the basic facts underlying the disputes between China and the Philippines.

In so doing, the Philippines attempts to deny China's territorial sovereignty and clothes its illegal occupation of China's islands and reefs with a cloak of "legality," she said.

The Philippines' attempt to seek a so-called "durable solution" such as this and the means it has employed to that end are absolutely unacceptable to China, Hua said.

In accordance with international law, and especially the principle of the law of the sea that "the land dominates the sea", determined territorial sovereignty is the precondition for, and basis of maritime delimitation, she said.

Hua added that the claims for arbitration as raised by the Philippines are essentially concerned with maritime delimitation between the two countries in parts of the South China Sea, and thus inevitably involve the territorial sovereignty over certain relevant islands and reefs.

However, such issues of territorial sovereignty are not the ones concerning the interpretation or application of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), she said.

Therefore, given the fact that the Sino-Philippine territorial disputes still remain unresolved, the compulsory dispute settlement procedures as contained in UNCLOS should not apply to the claims for arbitration as raised by the Philippines, said the spokeswoman.

Moreover, in 2006, the Chinese Government made a declaration in pursuance of Article 298 of UNCLOS, excluding disputes regarding such matters as those related to maritime delimitation from the compulsory dispute settlement procedures, including arbitration, according to Hua.

"Therefore, the request for arbitration by the Philippines is manifestly unfounded. China's rejection of the Philippines' request for arbitration, consequently, has a solid basis in international law," she added.

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