Taiwan reiterates its claim over islands in South China Sea
Taipei, Aug 2
The Taiwan government on Sunday reaffirmed its sovereignty claim over islands in the South China Sea after the Philippines shared an official nautical chart of Scarborough Shoal with the United Nations, local media reported.
Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said any disputes in the South China Sea should be resolved peacefully as per international law and the law of the sea, and called for Taipei's inclusion in the multilateral dispute settlement mechanisms, Taiwan's Central News Agency (CNA) reported.
Taiwan's MoFA statement comes after the Philippines shared an official nautical chart of Scarborough Shoal with the UN last week to reiterate its claim over the atoll claimed by Manila, Taipei, and Beijing.
In a statement issued on Friday, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said: "The deposit was made pursuant to Article 16 of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)." It stated that the Law of the Sea requires coastal states to give publicity to official charts depicting the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured, the CNA reported.
Scarborough Shoal is called Bajo de Masinloc in the Philippines, Democracy Reef in Taiwan, and Huangyan Dao in China, and is claimed by all three nations.
On July 31, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs criticised the Philippines over delimitation of the so-called "baselines of the territorial sea" of Huangyan Dao, terming it "illegal, null, and void". It stated that the Philippines' move was "a grave infringement" upon China's territorial sovereignty and a serious violation of international law, including the United Nations Charter and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
"China firmly rejects and will never accept it. Huangyan Dao is China's inherent territory. China has indisputable sovereignty over it and its adjacent waters, and has sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the relevant waters. China has continuously, peacefully and effectively exercised sovereignty and jurisdiction over Huangyan Dao," it said in a statement.
"The territory of the Philippines has been defined by a series of international treaties, and Huangyan Dao has never been a part of it. The Philippines' illegal territorial claim over China's Huangyan Dao is completely baseless under international law," it added.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the Philippines' unilateral initiation of the "South China Sea arbitration" violates the fundamental principles of international law, including pacta sunt servanda and estoppel, and international law, including UNCLOS, the bilateral agreement between China and the Philippines and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).
— IANS
Reader Comments
As someone who follows international maritime law, I find this quite complex. UNCLOS is supposed to be the framework, but when countries interpret it differently, we end up with situations like this. Taiwan's call to be included in dispute resolution mechanisms is notable, but the politics around Taiwan's status complicates everything.
One China policy remains the bedrock. Any claims by Taiwan are essentially claims by China, since Taiwan has always been part of China. The Philippines should respect historical boundaries and international treaties. 😤 India also has concerns about the militarization of these waters - we want peace and stability in the region!
The UNCLOS process for submitting charts seems reasonable, but it doesn't settle sovereignty disputes. It's more like declaring your position. The real issue is that three governments claim the same rocks in the middle of the ocean. I wonder if this is more about strategic positioning than actual territorial value. Economics and shipping lanes are the real drivers here.
Taiwan should be part of any multilateral discussions since it also has claims and presence in the region. Excluding Taiwan while expecting stability seems counterproductive. But the bigger picture is China's growing assertiveness in the region, which concerns many countries including India. The South China Sea needs to remain open and free for trade and navigation.
The Chinese statement about Huangyan Dao being their inherent territory, established by international treaties, is quite categorical. Meanwhile, the Philippines insists on its baselines claim. While we all want peaceful resolution, these competing unilateral declarations just create more confusion for vessels and fishermen operating there. As someone who grew up near the coast, I can't imagine this uncertainty.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.