New Delhi, July 14

India on Tuesday said its position on the South China Sea issue remains “clear and well-known,” stressing the importance of freedom of navigation, overflight and peaceful resolution of maritime disputes in accordance with international law.

Responding to media queries during the weekly press briefing, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the principles of international law reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) should guide the resolution of maritime disputes.

“Regarding the issue concerning the South China Sea, our position is clear and well-known. We emphasise the importance of freedom of navigation and overflight, other lawful uses of the sea, and unimpeded commerce, in accordance with international law as reflected in UNCLOS (the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea). This has always been our consistent position,” Jaiswal said.

“Maritime disputes should be resolved peacefully and in accordance with UNCLOS. The ruling delivered by the Arbitral Tribunal ten years ago is a significant milestone and a basis for the peaceful resolution of disputes among the concerned parties,” he added.

The comments came on the tenth anniversary of the July 12, 2016 ruling issued by the Arbitral Tribunal constituted under Annex VII of UNCLOS in the South China Sea case.
The United States, the United Kingdom and a dozen other Western and Asian countries reasserted on Sunday that

China's expansive claims in the South China Sea are illegal based on a 2016 arbitration ruling. A joint statement issued by the 14 nations said they rejected "destabilizing" actions in the disputed waters that threaten regional stability. The 27-nation European union released a separate statement, reaffirming the ruling as a "landmark decision in the peaceful settlement of disputes."

A group of 14 countries, including the United States and Japan, recently reaffirmed the 2016 arbitral award, stating that China’s broad claims in the South China Sea have no legal basis under international law.

The joint statement issued by Japan, Australia, Canada, Estonia, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, New Zealand, the Philippines, Romania, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and the United States reiterated support for a “free and open Indo-Pacific that is peaceful, stable and rules-based.”

The countries said the 2016 decision remains “final, legally binding and definitive” between China and the Philippines regarding the maritime claims and entitlements covered by the case. They also reaffirmed the tribunal’s conclusion that there is no legal basis for China’s expansive maritime claims, including those based on alleged “historic rights.”

The countries called on all parties to respect the arbitral award and resolve disputes peacefully through dialogue and other lawful mechanisms consistent with international law.

The European union also urged parties involved in the South China Sea dispute to fully implement the 2016 ruling, describing it as final and legally binding on China and the Philippines.

China, however, has consistently rejected the tribunal’s decision and refused to recognise the ruling despite repeated calls from the Philippines and other international partners.

On July 12, 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague issued a unanimous verdict in the case filed by the Philippines against China. It marked the first time an international tribunal ruled on the legal validity of competing maritime claims in the South China Sea.

A key aspect of the ruling involved China’s “Nine-Dash Line” claim, which covers a large portion of the South China Sea. Beijing had argued that it possessed historic rights over resources within the area.

The tribunal concluded that there was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights to resources within areas covered by the Nine-Dash Line where such claims were incompatible with maritime zones established under UNCLOS.

In Beijing, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the arbitration tribunal and its ruling "seriously contravene the general practice of international arbitration" and "gravely infringe upon China's legitimate rights as a sovereign state and state party to UNCLOS and are unjust and unlawful."

"China opposes and will never accept any claim or action based on those awards," the Chinese foreign ministry said, adding that Beijing "does not accept any means of third-party dispute settlement or any solution imposed on China."

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