China can’t assert its ownership of territories in the South China Sea on the basis of a new map that places almost all of the disputed waters within its national boundaries, the Philippines said on Thursday.
China’s new official map contains ten dashes instead of the usual nine dashes that forms a tongue-shaped perimeter around the South China Sea, encroaching on the territories of its smaller Asian neighbors like the Philippines.
The tenth dash, placed outside the South China Sea, was added beside Taiwan—a self-ruling democratic island that broke away from the mainland in 1949—to imply its status as a Chinese province.
“The map per se will not make the territories that you claim yours. If it were so, then let’s all draw our own maps,” Foreign Affairs Charles Jose told a press briefing.
The new map, which GMA News Online published as early as in 2013, is viewed as another attempt by China to reinforce its claims in the South China Sea. Foreign news wire agency Reuters reported on the new map on Wednesday.
Jose said the Philippines didn’t recognize the Chinese map, calling it “unreasonably expansive.”
“Your map should be based on international law,” Jose said. “No country in the world recognizes the nine-dash line of China.”
Jose expects the map to be nullified should the Philippines get a favorable ruling on the case it filed in 2013 against China before the Netherlands-based tribunal operating under a United Nations convention.
Manila is asking the court to declare China’s nine-dash line illegal.
“We are hoping that maybe by next year the tribunal will be able to hand down its decision and assuming we get a favorable decision then all this map will be invalidated because it does not comply with international law,” Jose said.
China claims the South China Sea nearly in its entirety and the cluster of islands, reefs and atolls further south that’s called the Spratlys. Other claimants are Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
Portions of the South China Sea that fall under Manila’s exclusive economic zone have been renamed West Philippine Sea by the Philippine government.
All claimants have stationed military troops in their territories in the vast sea, said to be sitting atop huge oil and gas deposits, except for Brunei. China can’t assert its ownership of territories in the South China Sea on the basis of a new map that places almost all of the disputed waters within its national boundaries, the Philippines said on Thursday.
China’s new official map contains ten dashes instead of the usual nine dashes that forms a tongue-shaped perimeter around the South China Sea, encroaching on the territories of its smaller Asian neighbors like the Philippines.
The tenth dash, placed outside the South China Sea, was added beside Taiwan—a self-ruling democratic island that broke away from the mainland in 1949—to imply its status as a Chinese province.
“The map per se will not make the territories that you claim yours. If it were so, then let’s all draw our own maps,” Foreign Affairs Charles Jose told a press briefing.
The new map, which GMA News Online published as early as in 2013, is viewed as another attempt by China to reinforce its claims in the South China Sea. Foreign news wire agency Reuters reported on the new map on Wednesday.
Jose said the Philippines didn’t recognize the Chinese map, calling it “unreasonably expansive.”
“Your map should be based on international law,” Jose said. “No country in the world recognizes the nine-dash line of China.”
Jose expects the map to be nullified should the Philippines get a favorable ruling on the case it filed in 2013 against China before the Netherlands-based tribunal operating under a United Nations convention.
Manila is asking the court to declare China’s nine-dash line illegal.
“We are hoping that maybe by next year the tribunal will be able to hand down its decision and assuming we get a favorable decision then all this map will be invalidated because it does not comply with international law,” Jose said.
China claims the South China Sea nearly in its entirety and the cluster of islands, reefs and atolls further south that’s called the Spratlys. Other claimants are Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
Portions of the South China Sea that fall under Manila’s exclusive economic zone have been renamed West Philippine Sea by the Philippine government.
All claimants have stationed military troops in their territories in the vast sea, said to be sitting atop huge oil and gas deposits, except for Brunei. —NB, GMA News
