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Activities of Related Parties

China

China want to developing ties with the Philippines

Speaking in a press conference on May 10, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lu Kang said, "China has been following the election in the Philippines. I want to stress that the Philippines is China's close neighbor and the two peoples enjoy traditional friendship. We hope that the new government of the Philippines can work with us towards the same direction, properly deal with relevant disputes, and bring bilateral relations back to the track of sound development with concrete actions. Regarding to the freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) by the USS William P. Lawrence to Fiery Cross Reef in the disputed South China Sea, Mr. Lu said, "The US has been waving the banner of navigation and overflight freedom and flexing its muscles in the South China Sea by ordering its military vessels and planes to sail or fly close to or even enter waters and air space near relevant islands and reefs of China's Islands. We oppose such move by the US side and will continue to take necessary measures to protect China's sovereignty and security." According to China's Ministry of Defense, two J-11 fighter jets and one Y-8 AWACS of PLA Navy's aviation force scrambled to relevant sea areas for patrol and keeping close watch on the U.S. warship, while the guided-missile destroyer Guangzhou, two frigates Mianyang and Linfen immediately reached out to identify and track the U.S. warship and warn it to leave. Regarding to the comment of the US State Department official Daniel Russel on May 10, saying that freedom of navigation operations were important for smaller nations, Mr. Lu on May 11, said " It would be better if the US could ratify and join UNCLOS at an early date, as we've said many times. That would make them sound more convincing next time when talking about international law." "Next time, on whatever occasion, if the topic of navigation freedom is raised by US officials again, I hope friends from the press can ask them to clarify what kind of navigation freedom they are talking about, commercial or military, because these two kinds of navigation freedom are two totally different things." he added.

In his response to the report saying that the G7 Summit which will be held in Japan this month will talk about the South China Sea issue and reiterate the importance of safeguarding maritime order in accordance with international law, Mr. Lu on May 12, said, "Japan is acting against law while knowing law perfectly well. It is rather confusing to see Japan trying to draw others to its high-profile campaign for the international rule of law at the G7 Summit while breaking the law on the other hand. This only exposes its hypocrisy and that Japan is not serious. Considering all this, if the relevant institution still endorses Japan's behavior, then that would be very ridiculous."

Taiwan enters South China Sea legal fray

A Taiwanese group has intervened in the Philippines' international court case against China's claims in the South China Sea, pressing Taipei's position that Taiwan is entitled to a swathe of the disputed waterway as an economic zone. The submission to the court states "it is clear that Itu Aba is an island which can sustain human habitation and economic life of its own under....UNCLOS." The move could delay the judges' ruling, now expected within two months, and potentially complicates worsening territorial disputes roiling across the vital trade route.

China voices strong dissatisfaction over U.S. report on Chinese military

Defense Ministry Spokesman Yang Yujun on May 5, expressed "strong dissatisfaction" and "firm opposition" to a Pentagon report that he said has misrepresented China's military development. The U.S. annual report on China's military and security developments has severely damaged mutual trust between the two sides, Yang said, urging the U.S. side to take tangible actions to promote the healthy and stable development of relations between the two countries and their armed forces.

Vietnam

Vietnam firmly opposes to Taiwan’s sovereignty violations

Vietnam's Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson Le Hai Binh on May 12 has voiced protest against Taiwan (China)’s violations of Vietnam’s sovereignty over Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago. Taiwan’s ongoing undertaking of illegal activities, including bringing its former senior officials to Ba Binh island and releasing stamps highlighting its claims in the East Sea, regardless of Vietnam’s concerns and protests in the past, are a serious violation of Vietnam’s sovereignty, he said, adding that it also further complicates the situation and is unbeneficial to the maintenance of peace and stability in the region. He said Taiwan’s above actions could not change the truth that Vietnam holds sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa archipelagoes.

The Philippines

Duterte wants friendly ties with China

Presumptive president-elect Rodrigo Duterte said May 15 he wanted friendly relations with China and confirmed he was open to direct talks over a territorial row that has badly damaged bilateral ties. “Well, ties have never been cold. But I would rather be friendly with everybody,” Duterte said. Duterte also announced that China’s ambassador to Manila would be among the first three foreign envoys he planned to meet, after winning the May 9 presidential election in a landslide. Earlier, newly elected president's  spokesman, Peter Lavina said the Philippines is willing to form partnerships with China to extract gas and oil deposits that are believed to be in the sea, as well as explore joint fishing management systems.

The United States

U.S. navy ship continued its FONOPs close to a disputed reef in the South China Sea

 

U.S. Defense Department spokesman Bill Urban said Guided missile destroyer the USS William P. Lawrence traveled within 12 nautical miles (22 km) of Chinese-occupied Fiery Cross Reef. The so-called freedom of navigation operation was undertaken to "challenge excessive maritime claims" by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam which were seeking to restrict navigation rights in the South China Sea, Urban said. "These excessive maritime claims are inconsistent with international law as reflected in the Law of the Sea Convention in that they purport to restrict the navigation rights that the United States and all states are entitled to exercise," Urban said in an emailed statement.

Australia

Australia supports US warship exercised right to freedom of navigation, overflight

Regarding to the U.S. recent FONOPs within 12 miles of Fiery Cross Reef in the disputed South China Sea, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said, "All states have a right under international law to freedom of navigation and freedom of overflight in the South China Sea and elsewhere, and that's Australia's position." "I understand that the United States was simply exercising this right, as it does from time to time, and this was a routine operation," Ms Bishop said. She called on all states to "refrain from any aggressive or coercive conduct against vessels exercising their right". "We don't take sides in the various claims over territorial or boundary issues but we urge all parties to exercise restraint and to ensure that they abide by international norms," Ms Bishop said.

Regional Snapshots

ASEAN officers join training course on protection of EEZ

The five-day course in Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Protection, conducted by the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence in the central city of Da Nang on May 13, drew the participation of 25 military officers from Indonesia , Malaysia , Brunei, Thailand , the Philippines and Vietnam. International maritime organisations and legislation, physical maritime threats and how to counter them, fishery protection and the global maritime distress and safety system, as well as search and rescue operations and the agencies that conduct them, environmental issues and disaster management were discussed during the programme. This is the first time that the UK military personnel have delivered training in Vietnam, marking a significant step forward in the two nations’ training co-operation. Speaking about the course, the UK ’s defence attaché to Vietnam, Group Captain Tim Below, said: “I look forward to continuing to deepen the defence relationship between our two countries through further opportunities to share experience in other areas of operations in the months ahead.”

Japan - U.S. navies agree on cooperation

Japan's Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and US Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus have agreed to continue cooperating on concerns toward North Korea's ballistic missile launches and China's increasing maritime presence in the South China Sea. Nakatani said Japan's security environment is becoming more severe. He said the Japan-US alliance is very significant to deterrent and developing measures to cope with these issues. Mabus said it is important to show the world how the US and Japan are operating together in response to missile launches. He said the bilateral stance is to firmly deal with attempts to change the status quo in the South China Sea and East China Sea.

Malaysia, China agree to settle East Sea issues through DOC

Malaysia and China have agreed to address East Sea-related issues through the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) while speeding up the formation of a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).

According to Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman, the agreement was reached during his meeting on May 10 with Chinese State Councillor Yang Jiechi, who is on a two-day visit to the ASEAN country. During the meeting, the two sides discussed the encroachment of Chinese fishermen into the Malaysian waters. Malaysia raised its concern and Yang pledged to look into this issue, the host stated, believing that the two countries will find out solutions to the issue. Both sides also compared notes on the bilateral relations as well as measures to intensify trade and investment ties.

THE EAST SEA STUDIES