Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Beijing reiterated on Tuesday (July 14) its refusal to accept Manila’s arbitration case against it over the West Philippine Sea. In a statement, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said that “China will never accept any imposed solution or unilaterally resorting to a third-party settlement” on disputes such as that in the West Philippine Sea.
The spokesperson described China as a victim: “Being a victim of the South China Sea issue, China, bearing in mind the whole situation of regional peace and stability, however, has been exercising utmost restraint.”
A hearing was held in the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague from July 7 to July 13 to discuss the five-member Aribtral Tribunal’s authority to preside over the territorial row. China was absent throughout the entire course of the proceedings; it prefers to conduct bilateral talks with the Philippines.
Nevertheless, the PCA said that it has kept China updated on all developments in the arbitration and remains open to China’s participation at any stage of the proceedings. The Arbitral Tribunal has given Beijing up to August 17 to comment on last week’s developments.
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China has aired its opinions on the case in the past. In December last year, it released a “Position Paper” that explained why the court does not have jurisdiction over the dispute. According to the PCA, the tribunal has considered China’s communications “to constitute, in effect, a plea” that the Philippines’ case does not fall under the court’s jurisdiction.
The Philippines and China have until July 20 to review and submit corrections to the hearing’s transcripts, which are expected to be made public. The court has also given the Philippines until July 23 to submit further written responses to questions posed by the judges during the hearing.
“The Arbitral Tribunal now enters its deliberations and is conscious of its duty under the Rules of Procedure to conduct proceedings ‘to avoid unnecessary delay and expense and to provide a fair and efficient process,'” the PCA said.
