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Finnish scholar agrees to China's stance on award of South China Sea case

Xinhua, July 15, 2016 Adjust font size:

It is understandable that China rejects the award issued by The Hague-based arbitral tribunal handling the South China Sea arbitration case as the court has no jurisdiction over the case, a Finnish scholar has said.

Many Chinese scholars think the tribunal lacks jurisdiction and thus they reject to accept the award, said Kamrul Hossain, an adjunct professor of international law at the University of Lapland.

This is understandable because the Philippines initiated the compulsory arbitration unilaterally, which lacks jurisdiction unless the two parties both agree on it, Hossain told Xinhua in a telephone interview.

"It is natural that there is naming and blaming, and I agree with the Chinese scholars in this sense," he said.

A tribunal in the Permanent Court of Arbitration issued on Tuesday an award overwhelmingly siding with the Philippines, denying China's long-standing historic rights in the South China Sea.

Hossain expressed concern over the possibility of increased tension in the South China Sea region.

He said it was not surprising that the arbitral tribunal issued such an award, but it would not affect the legal situation in the region since China has disregarded the ruling.

However, it may have some political implications as some countries may use the ruling for pure political gain, he added.

Elina Sinkkonen, a researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, predicted more troubles in the South China Sea.

"You have to see what will happen next in the area. There is a risk that if countries increase their presence in the contentious areas there may be collisions or provocations," Sinkkonen told local media.

Hossain said if any party offers mediation, it should comply with the Chinese stance, which has been made clear all the time.

"To have an effective solution, since China is not willing to bring the dispute to any multilateral or judicial forum, bilateral talks may offer room for a political solution," he said. Endi