Non-regional states have no right to interfere in PH, China maritime disputes: minister

From ABS-CBN (Jan 12, 2024): Non-regional states have no right to interfere in PH, China maritime disputes: minister (Reuters)

Non-regional states have no right to interfere in PH, China maritime disputes: minister

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning on Thursday reiterated China's clear and consistent position on the South China Sea issue, emphasizing dialogue and consultation for dispute resolution while prioritizing the safeguarding of peace, stability, territorial sovereignty, and maritime rights and interests.

Mao made the statement in response to reports of German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock expressing concern about the situation in the South China Sea and the European country's commitment to a rules-based international order, specifically highlighting Chinese actions and the recent clashes between Chinese and Filipino vessels in the region.

"China's position on the South China Sea issue is clear and consistent. We are committed to properly handling disputes through dialogue and consultation with countries concerned and would like to work with ASEAN countries to safeguard peace and stability in the region. That being said, China will firmly safeguard its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests," said Mao.

The spokeswoman also stressed that no non-regional country has the right to interfere in the maritime disputes between China and the Philippines.

Tension has flared in recent months between China and the Philippines as they have traded accusations over several run-ins in the waterway, including charges that China rammed a ship last month carrying the Philippine armed forces chief of staff.

"Such risky manoeuvres violate the rights and economic development opportunities of your country and other neighbouring countries," Annalena Baerbock told a joint news conference with Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo.

"For countries around the world, they call into question the freedom of the sea routes guaranteed under international law in an area through which a third of global maritime trade flows," she said.

China claims sovereignty over nearly the entire South China Sea, pointing to a line on its maps that cuts into the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia.

In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague said China's claims had no legal basis. China has rejected that ruling.

"The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea speaks clearly to China's claims to extensive maritime areas in the South China Sea," said Baerbock, who also met with the Philippine president and separately with the chief of the Philippine Coast Guard onboard a ship.

Baerbock was in Manila for a two-day official visit, the first by a German foreign minister to the Philippines in more than a decade, as the two nations mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

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