It shows the Law of the Sea treaty provides a level playing field for states, big and small, to protect their legal rights. On Tuesday, the Arbitral Tribunal in the South China Sea disputes between the Philippines and China issued its long-awaited final award. It rejected China’s claim of historic rights within the “Nine-Dash Line”. […]

After a major diplomatic set-back, a look back at how China got to this point. The ruling by the tribunal in the Philippines vs. China arbitration case is no doubt a major setback to Chinese diplomacy. No matter how people evaluate the quality and impartiality of the ruling, especially concerning it is overwhelmingly in favor […]

As South China Sea tensions rise, Beijing rethinks its relationship with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. The rising tensions in South China Sea, especially the arbitration lawsuit brought by the Philippines, have stimulated debate and research about China’s South China Sea policy, as well as about the United Nations Convention on […]

THE weak legal standing of Beijing’s actions in the South China Sea has never been in any doubt outside China’s borders. The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration’s (PCA’s) ruling on Tuesday rebutting Beijing’s claims vis-a-vis the Philippines is thus unsurprising, even if its sweeping nature exceeded analysts’ expectations. The course Beijing charts now will have […]

China’s territorial claims are driven by a sense of historical victimisation. Salvatore Babones is a specialist in global economic structure. The judges have spoken: China has no legal basis for its claims to sovereignty over the South China Sea. China’s “nine-dash line” territorial claims, which cover most of the South China Sea, will not be […]

International law expert Roncevert Ganan Almond on the recent ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration. What do you think about this ruling? Does it follow your predictions? The unanimous ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (the “PCA” or “Tribunal”) in the dispute between the Philippines and China is a landmark decision under the […]

The European Union and its Member States, as contracting parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), acknowledge the Award rendered by the Arbitral Tribunal, being committed to maintaining a legal order of the seas and oceans based upon the principles of international law, UNCLOS, and to the peaceful settlement […]

This week’s binding decision from the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, Netherlands, dealt a serious blow to China’s claim to most of the South China Sea, a 1.4 million-square-mile body of water that contains the world’s busiest shipping lanes. The ruling was rejected immediately by the Chinese Foreign Ministry — as expected — […]

The stronger China gets, the more important is the question of whether it will be a world power that wields its strength responsibly. Yesterday’s ruling against China by a United Nations arbitration tribunal brings this question into sharp focus. Beijing boycotted the proceedings, and has rejected the decision. By chance, the EU-China summit began the […]

WASHINGTON: Leading legislators from both parties welcomed today’s UN tribunal ruling against Chinese claims in the South China Sea. But while Republicans focused on China’s misdeeds, Democrats consistently brought up an American omission: The United States has never ratified the very treaty empowering the tribunal to stand up China, the UN Convention on the Law […]