A US official on Tuesday said China’s claim that America is the “mastermind” behind the increasing number of countries recognizing the Philippines’ sovereignty over the West Philippine Sea is an “insult” to Manila.
US State Department Counselor Derek Chollet said that it was China’s activities that have been inconsistent with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the arbitral ruling that invalidated its massive nine-dash-line claim in the South China Sea.
In particular, Chollet cited China’s unilateral fishing moratorium in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
“Any statement that somehow the US was putting a partner like the Philippines up to this is preposterous. I think it’s an insult to the Philippines,” said Chollet who is in Manila for a visit.
In a statement last week, China accused the US of mobilizing countries to gang up on Beijing to pressure it into accepting the arbitral ruling.
“As the mastermind behind the South China Sea arbitration, the US ropes in allies to play up the issue each year on the anniversary of the illegal award to gang up against China and to exert pressure, and force China into accepting the award,” the Chinese embassy said in a statement.
“We are firmly against this,” it added.
China’s remark came after a growing number of countries openly expressed support for the Philippines in the maritime row—a development welcomed by Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Enrique Manalo.
Among those countries include the US, an ally of the Philippines; Japan, which also has disputes against China over the East China Sea; Australia, which shares the same waters with the Philippines and China; India, which shares a border with China; and the UK, France, and other European nations.
Chollet said Washington will continue to work alongside the Philippines and other allied partners in ensuring the rules-based maritime order and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.
Chollet said Washington does not seek conflict or confrontation, but it “will not flinch in the face of bullying or coercion” as it views China’s “dangerous operational behavior” as something “infringing on freedom of navigation as guaranteed under international law.”
On July 12, 2016, the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled that China’s “nine-dash line,” which it cites as the basis to claim the West Philippine Sea, a part of the bigger South China Sea, is contrary to the provisions of the UNCLOS.
UNCLOS is an international agreement, which both the Philippines and China ratified, that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities.
China said it will “never accept any claim or action based on the award.”
