The Department of Foreign Affairs lauded the advisory opinion issued by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), which declared key parts of the 2016 South China Sea arbitration ruling as “authoritative.”
According to the DFA, the advisory opinion was in response to the request submitted by the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law in December 2022.
As a state party to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Philippines participated in the proceedings in September 2023 to support the call of small island states for protection against the impact of climate change.
“This bolsters and reinforces the legitimacy of the final and binding 2016 Arbitration Award and its unassailable status as part of the corpus of international law,” the DFA said in a statement.
“The Philippines therefore takes this opportunity to reiterate its continuing call for full compliance with the Award,” it added.
In 2016, the United Nations-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration has rendered an Arbitral Ruling upholding the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in the West Philippine Sea, part of which is continuously being claimed by China through its nine-dash line in the South China Sea. However, Beijing has never recognized the decision.
The DFA said that the Philippines is “diligently studying” the advisory opinion and its implications for the state parties to UNCLOS, “particularly on the duty to protect and preserve the marine environment in the context of greenhouse gas emissions, climate change impacts, and ocean acidification.”
“The Philippines recognizes that advisory opinions are significant contributions to the clarification and development of international law,” the DFA said.
“The Philippines reiterates that the rule of law ensures equity in the global commons and a fair, just, and peaceful multilateral world order,” the DFA statement added.
It also invited other countries to join in a constructive dialogue and thorough study of the ITLOS advisory opinion.
Meanwhile, the Philippines on Sunday reiterated its calls for China to “desist from any action that would undermine peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region.”
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the Philippine government is seriously concerned over the new China Coast Guard regulations, saying it is a “direct violation of international law” as it cannot be enforced in the high seas.
The department was referring to the “Regulations on Administrative Law Enforcement Procedures for Coast Guard Agencies” that was approved and announced on May 15, and is supposed to take effect on June 15.
Under the new Chinese regulation, the China Coast Guard is authorized to detain those who will illegally enter the waters under its jurisdiction for up to 60 days without trial.
“Every sovereign state has the right to formulate and enact laws, including the enforcement of domestic legislation within its jurisdiction. However, a state’s domestic laws may not be applied and enforced in the territory, maritime zones or jurisdiction of other states, nor violate other sovereign states’ rights and entitlements under international law,” the DFA said in a statement.
“These same domestic laws cannot be applied nor enforced in the high seas under international law,” it added.
According to the DFA, the regulations are issued on the basis of the 2021 Coast Guard law, which also illegally expanded the maritime law enforcement powers of China’s Coast Guard.
“China would be in direct violation of international law should it enforce these new regulations in the waters and maritime features within the illegal, null and void, and expansive 10-dash line, which would effectively cover areas of the West Philippine Sea, where the Philippines has sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction, or in the high seas,” the DFA emphasized.
The department also said China “must ensure that its relevant legislation clearly reflect and abide by its commitments and obligations under international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and the binding 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea, as well as the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).”
Earlier, President Marcos called the policy “unacceptable.”