Arbitration on South China Sea issue unilaterally initiated by Philippines unlawful: Chinese ambassador to Indonesia

The arbitration unilaterally initiated by the Philippines regarding the South China Sea issue is unlawful, wrote Xie Feng, the Chinese ambassador to Indonesia, in an article published on the Indonesia's largest English newspaper the Jakarta Post Wednesday.

Despite the Philippines packaged its appeal and asked the arbitral tribunal to rule the legal status of some of China's islands and reefs, the compulsory arbitration in essence deals with the sovereignty dispute which does not fall within the interpretation and application of UN convention on the sea of law (UNCLOS), Xie stated in the article titled "The dangerous arbitration of Beijing-Manila dispute".

The Philippines' abuse of compulsory procedures will undermine the international rule of law and regional peace, as it may set a precedent that any disputes, whether concerning territorial sovereignty or maritime delimitation, could be submitted for arbitration in the future, warned the Chinese ambassador, adding that the declarations excluding compulsory arbitration made by over 30 countries will also be rendered meaningless.

The case will also lead countries outside the region to take advantage of the Philippines to further heat up the tension by increasing military presence and pushing forward the "rebalancing" strategy, according to Xie.

"What is at state is the solidarity, cooperation, stability and prosperity that Asian countries have enjoyed for over 20 years, " he pointed out.

China will neither accept nor recognize the arbitration imposed by the Philippines unilaterally and illegally and the ruling will in no way change the history and fact that China has sovereignty over the South China Sea islands and their adjacent waters, concluded Xie Feng. Endit