International court finds no historical basis for Chinese territorial claims over the South China Sea

BOFIT Viikkokatsaus / BOFIT Weekly Review 2016/28

​In 2013, the Philippines took China to international arbitration court in the Hague over violations of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). On Tuesday (July 12), the 5-member UN arbitration panel ruled in favour of the Philippines. China asserts that its “nine-dash line” demarcation of an area covering most of the South China Sea is based on historical rights. The tribunal, however, said it could find no legal basis for the claim. The panel further noted that none of the features claimed by China in the Spratly Islands met the definition of an island under UNCLOS, giving no right to claim an exclusive economic zone that gives rights to extract natural resources from the surrounding sea and seabed. The ruling is binding, but the tribunal has no power to enforce it.

It was the first time a court took a position on a territorial dispute in the South China Sea. China did not participate in the proceedings, claiming the arbitration panel lacked jurisdiction over the matter. China announced already before the ruling that it would not give credence to any ruling of the panel. It would rather like to seek to resolve differences on a bilateral basis. Besides the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam also have territorial claims in the region that partly overlap China's. The South China Sea has some of the world’s busiest shipping routes, as well as significant fishing waters and large oil & gas potential.

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