Ruling due in Philippines’ South China Sea claim

摘要

The main legal challenge to China’s territorial ambitions in the potentially energy-rich South China Sea is nearing completion. The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague, the Netherlands, is due to rule on the validity of Beijing’s claims next week, but the decision is unlikely to ease regional tensions. The PCA will publish its verdict on the case, which was brought by the Philippines in early 2013, on 12 July. Manila appealed to the court for arbitration under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos), questioning the legitimacy of China’s claims to disputed areas and its ownership of almost all of the South China Sea through its vague “nine-dash line”. China has refused to participate in the case, which it says is “illegal and invalid”