South China Sea: India, US say 'accept ruling' while Pakistan backs China
TNN & Agencies | Jul 12, 2016, 09.16 PM IST
HIGHLIGHTS
- India has urged all parties involved in the South China Sea dispute to show utmost respect for the UN-backed tribunal's ruling
- An International tribunal struck down China's claims of "historical rights" in the strategic South China Sea
A ship (top) of the Chinese Coast Guard is seen near a ship of the Vietnam Marine Guard in the South China Sea. (Reuters photo)
NEW DELHI: India on Tuesday urged all parties involved in the
South China Seadispute to show utmost respect for the UN-backed tribunal's ruling.
A UN-backed international tribunal on Tuesday struck down China's claims of "historical rights" in the strategic South China Sea, prompting Chinese President Xi Jinping to reject its ruling and asserting that Beijing will not accept the verdict "under any circumstances".
"Sea lanes of communication passing through the South China Sea are critical for peace, stability, prosperity and development. As a State Party to the 1982
United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea (UNCLOS), India urges all parties to show utmost respect for the UNCLOS, which establishes the international legal order of the seas and oceans," the ministry of external affairs said in a statement.
India supports freedom of navigation and over flight, and unimpeded commerce, based on the principles of international law, as reflected notably in the UNCLOS, the statement said.
India believes that States should resolve disputes through peaceful means without threat or use of force and exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that could complicate or escalate disputes affecting peace and stability, it further said.
Earlier today, the Permanent Court of Arbitration said in a statement that there was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights within the sea areas falling within the 'nine-dash line'.
China "neither accepts nor recognises" the ruling of the tribunal in the SCS arbitration established at the request of the Philippines, the
Chinese Foreign Ministrysaid in Beijing.
"The award is null and void and has no binding force," it said in a statement minutes after the tribunal delivered its judgement striking down Beijing's claims of historic rights over the area, strongly disputed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
The US has also urged all parties to accept the tribunal's ruling saying it's "final and legally binding."
"The decision today by the Tribunal in the Philippines-China arbitration is an important contribution to the shared goal of a peaceful resolution to disputes in the South China Sea," State Department spokesman
John Kirby said in a statement.
Pakistan, however, backed its "all-weather" ally China and said Islamabad opposes any imposition of "unilateral will" on others.
Pakistan maintains that disputes over the South China Sea (SCS) should be peacefully resolved through consultations and negotiations by states directly concerned in accordance with bilateral agreements and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Nafees Zakaria said.
"Pakistan opposes any imposition of unilateral will on others and respects China's statement of optional exception in light of Article 298 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea," Zakaria said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...Pakistan-backs-China/articleshow/53178722.cms