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Activities of Concerned Parties

China

COSCO competes to build cruise business of Paracel Islands

According to Chinadaily, China COSCO Shipping Corp plans to launch cruise lines in the South China Sea next month. The first route is expected to travel from Sanya to the disputed Paracels. "It is practical to stimulate the local economy through development of tourism, logistics and infrastructure facilities," said Xu Lirong, chairman of COSCO Shipping. In late April, China COSCO Shipping signed a contract with China National Travel Service (HK) Group Corp and China Communications Construction Co Ltd, to jointly establish a cruise company to offer tourism services in the South China Sea.

China appreciates Prime Minister Hun Sen's comment on South China Sea

Regarding to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen's speech about the issue of the South China Sea at the commencement of the Cambodian academy of governance, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying, in a press conference, said "China highly commend and appreciate Prime Minister Hun Sen's remarks." She added, "China will not accept any solution imposed upon it nor any unilateral resort to a third party dispute settlement procedure. China remains committed to resolving relevant disputes through negotiation with sovereign states directly concerned on the basis of respecting historical facts and in accordance with international law." In her comment on the report saying that there are only eight countries truly endorsing China's position on the South China Sea arbitration case, Ms. Hua said, "Some western media sometimes call white black. But we know now that they also have problems with doing simple math." The fact is that more and more countries have shown their support and understanding to China's stance after getting a clear picture of the background of the South China Sea issue and the nature of the arbitration case. Some countries did this in open and written forms, and some in private and oral ways. Some statements were reported, and some were not. Whatever way they chose, dozens of countries have made their voices heard," she said.

Beijing finds fresh ‘fire ice’ reserves in South China Sea

According to the Guangzhou Daily reported on June 26, the China Geological Survey made the latest discovery, finding a new reserve of “combustible ice” has been identified in the South China Sea near the Pearl River mouth basin in what may be a significant step forward in developing the highly-pure fuel as a potential new energy source. It said the area could contain the equivalent of 100 to 150 billion cubic metres of natural gas. The missions were carried out with a remote-controlled diving vessel made in China named Seahorse.

Vietnam

Vietnam raises East Sea issue at UNCLOS member states’ meeting

On June 23, Speaking at 26 th meeting of States Parties to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) held in New York from June 20-24, attracting 79 out of 168 member states, international organisations and 10 observer countries, ambassador Nguyen Phuong Nga, head of the permanent Vietnam mission to the United Nations expressed concern over the recent complicated developments in the East Sea, particularly large-scale construction and upgrade that changes the nature of several structures in the East Sea, as well as militarised actions that erode trust, exacerbate tension and seriously impact peace, stability and security in the region. Ambassador Nga has called on parties concerned to immediately stop actions that change the status quo, destroy marine environment and further complicate the East Sea issue. She also affirmed the significance of the UNCLOS in creating a legal framework to adjust member states’ rights and interests in terms of the peaceful, fair, stable and effective use of the sea and the oceans.

Vietnam demands China to stop their illegal activities in South China Sea

On June 24, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Le Hai Binh made statement while fielding queries from reporters concerning information from Chinese media over China’s construction on and plans related to Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos. 

China has continued building and operating a number of facilities on Truong Sa, including a hospital on the Chu Thap (Fiery Cross) Reef and a farm on Xubi (Subi) Reef, while its state-run shipping company COSCO said it plans to launch tours to Hoang Sa.

Illegal activities that have been continuously deployed by China cannot change the fact that Vietnam has sovereignty over the two archipelagos, he said. “Vietnam strongly objects to these activities. Vietnam requests China to respect the country’s sovereignty over the two archipelagoes, to immediately put an end to these violations without similar repetition in the future, and to stringently comply with the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), practically contributing to maintaining peace and security in the East Sea,” Binh stated.

Indonesia

Indonesia says has no overlapping South China Sea claims with China

In a response to the comment of China's foreign ministry on June 20, saying that said the two nations do not have any territorial disputes but there were some overlapping claims on "maritime rights and interests", Indonesia's foreign minister Retno Marsudi said, "Our position is clear that claims can only be made on the basis of international law. For Indonesia, we don't have overlapping claims in any form in Indonesian waters with China."

Indonesia to blow up illegal foreign fishing boats

Indonesia plans to sink at least 30 foreign vessels caught by the authorities while conducting illegal fishing in its waters, Minister of Maritime and Fisheries Susi Pudjiastuti announced on June 21. She said that the foreign boats involved in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities were arrested by joint teams from her ministry, the navy and the coastguard. The boats will be blown up on July 9-10. According to Susi Pudjiastuti, Indonesia has sunken a total of 176 foreign fishing boats across the nation since October last year.

Chinese poachers are 'excuse' for Beijing to lay claim to Natunas

Speaking at the press conference on June 21, Chinese fishing boats poaching in the Natunas was a "ruse" by Beijing to stake its claims in the South China Sea, said the commander of Indonesia navy's Western Fleet, Rear Admiral A. Taufiq R. said, "Stealing our fish is just an excuse, it is really a move to establish their claims. When you claim a territory, you have to be there and their way to achieve that is by deploying fishing vessels." His comments came after Indonesian warships detained another China-flagged vessel and its crew for fishing illegally in waters off the Natuna Islands, which belong to Indonesia. On June 20, Indonesian vice-president Jusuf Kalla told Reuters that Indonesia would send a message to Beijing demanding that it respect the Southeast Asian nation's sovereignty over waters around the Natuna Islands. "This is not a clash, but we are protecting the area," Kalla said. Asked if the Indonesian government had made a decision to be more assertive, he said: "Yes, we will continue."

Cambodia

Cambodian PM denies role in ASEAN U-turn on South China Sea

Cambodian Premier Hun Sen lashed out Monday (Jun 20) at claims his government had bowed to Chinese pressure to help scupper a joint statement by Southeast Asian nations on the South China Sea. "It is very unjust for Cambodia," he said, accusing unnamed countries of "using Cambodia to counter China". Hun Sen also hit out at the Hague-based arbitration court. "This is not about laws, it is totally about politics. I will not support any judgement by the court," he said, adding that the case was a "political conspiracy between some countries and the court". The ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) said, June 22, it fully supports Prime Minister Hun Sen’s backing of China in the dispute over control of the South China Sea. The ruling party also said that “The CPP would like to reject unjust allegations that Cambodia has destroyed the issuing of a joint statement from Asean on the issue of the South China Sea both in Kunming recently and in 2012."

The United States

USS Spruance patrols South China Sea

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG 111) is on a routine patrol in the South China Sea as part of a Pacific Surface Action Group (PAC SAG) deployment to the Indo-Asia-Pacific. “Spruance is currently operating in the South China Sea in support of maritime security and stability of all nations, especially in the Indo-Asian-Pacific,” said Cmdr. Manuel Hernandez, commanding officer of Spruance. “Spruance is ready and capable. The Spruance team has trained extensively for this deployment.”

U.S. navy chief hopes carriers deter East Asia destabilization

Speaking in Center for a New American Security, on June 20, Admiral John Richardson, the chief of U.S. Naval Operations said that it was not often the United States had two carrier strike groups in the same waters and it was a sign of U.S. commitment to regional security. "We hope that there’s a deterrent message there as well,” he said. Richardson said China's large-scale land reclamation in the South China Sea and militarization of artificial islands extended its potential ability to deny access to a region with precision missiles and radar, something that "demands a response."

U.S. warns China against provocations once court rules on sea claims          

Colin Willett, deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asia, on June 22, warned China against taking "additional provocative actions" following an impending international court ruling on the South China Sea. She said Washington had "a lot of options" to respond to any such Chinese moves in a region she said was vital to U.S. interests. "We have an interest in upholding our defense commitments and our security partnerships," she stressed.

Russia

Tensions in the South China Sea largely due to the non-regional countries’ interference

Speaking in an interview on June 21, ussian Ambassador to China Andrey Denisov said, "tensions here are often, and possibly even in most cases fuelled artificially, largely due to the non-regional countries’ interference in a conflict settlement." He added, "Russian experts believe that some countries’ suspicions, if not outright accusations against Chinese restrictions, which some interpret as threating the freedom of navigation in the region, are ungrounded and are removed from reality, if only because China, which has long become the world’s largest country in terms of trade, larger even than the United States, ships the overwhelming majority of its exports and imports by sea, mostly across the South China Sea. Russia’s position on the South China Sea disputes is well known, logical and clear. We believe that any dispute should be settled through negotiations between the countries involved in these disputes."

Regional Snapshots

Vietnamese, Cambodian foreign ministers confer on sea disputes

Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh and his Cambodian counterpart Prak Sokhon discussed matters relating to issues in the East Vietnam Sea on Wednesday in Hanoi, as part of the latter’s official visit to Vietnam from June 21 to 23. The two affirmed that Hanoi and Phnom Penh should also work with other ASEAN member states to magnify the central role of the organization, contributing to peace, stability, security, and cooperation in the region and the world. Regarding to the South China Sea issue, the two parties reached consensus on the settlement of disputes in the East Vietnam Sea via amicable solutions, condemning the use of threat and violence, as per international law, namely the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Vietnam Sea (DOC), with a view to establishing a Code of Conduct for the maritime area.

Russia-China Stress on the Impotance of International Law

According to the Declaration of the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China on the Promotion of International Law issued on June 25, the two sides reaffirm the principle of peaceful settlement of disputes and express their firm conviction that States shall resolve their disputes through dispute settlement means and mechanisms that they have agreed upon, and all means of settlement of disputes should serve the goal of resolving disputes in a peaceful manner in accordance with applicable international law. The two countries also emphasize the important role of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in maintaining the rule of law relating to activities in the Oceans. It is of utmost importance that the provisions of this universal treaty are applied consistently, in such a manner that does not impair rights and legitimate interests of States Parties and does not compromise the integrity of the legal regime established by the Convention.

Malaysian plane intercepted by Indonesian fighter jets

According to an anonymous senior official, a Malaysian military transport plane was intercepted by two Indonesian jet fighters while flying a regular route over Indonesia’s Natuna Islands. The C-130 aircraft was flying from west Malaysia on Saturday towards the eastern Malaysian state of Sabah. However, on June 27, The Malaysian Defense Ministry has denied allegations that a Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) C-130 aircraft (MEGA 207) had been intercepted by two F-16 jets belonging to the Indonesian Air Force. Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said the incident at a regular route over Indonesia’s Natuna Islands three days ago was instead a “mere visual identification” of the aircraft.

THE EAST SEA STUDIES