While the people of Mongolia were celebrating Naadam and their government was preparing to host the 11th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit, the Arbitral Tribunal of the Permanent Court of Arbitration issued a ruling on the South China Sea dispute on July 12 without much media fanfare in Mongolia, the second-largest inland country in the world. With the government’s conclusion of the ASEM Summit and formation of the new cabinet, the people can now focus their attention on the July 12 decision and the responses from the parties concerned, including that of the Republic of China (Taiwan).
The outcome of the Philippines-initiated arbitration case infringes on the sovereignty and maritime rights of the ROC by referring to it as the Taiwan Authority of China and attempting to downgrade Taiping Island—the largest naturally formed island of the Nansha (Spratly) Islands—from an island to a rock.
This unjust decision has triggered a series of strong protests, in both words and deeds, from the government and people of Taiwan. The ROC Office of the President and other government institutions concerned, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of the Interior, and Ministry of National Defense, immediately issued strong statements rejecting the decision and reiterating ROC sovereignty over the South China Sea islands. The government and people have demonstrated the collective will to defend their rights and interests under international law.
Having recovered the South China Sea islands following World War II, the ROC government started stationing personnel on Taiping Island in June 1956. Taiping Island fully meets the definition of an island as laid out in Article 121 of UNCLOS, as it can sustain human habitation and an economic life of its own. Therefore, the ROC is entitled to full rights over 12 nautical miles of territorial waters, a 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone, and the continental shelf with respect to Taiping Island.
The ROC government finds the tribunal's arbitration to be completely unacceptable and holds the following position on the matter:
- The text of the award refers to the ROC as the Taiwan Authority of China, which is inappropriate and demeaning to the ROC as a sovereign state.
- As Taiping Island was not originally included in the Philippines’ submissions for arbitration, the tribunal overstepped its authority by declaring that Taiping Island and the Nansha (Spratly) Islands to be rocks that “do not generate an exclusive economic zone.” This decision seriously undermines the legal status of these South China Sea islands, over which the ROC exercises sovereignty, and their relevant maritime rights.
- During the arbitration process, the tribunal neither solicited the ROC government’s views nor formally invited the ROC to participate in the proceedings. Therefore, the award has no legally binding force on the ROC.
- That the ROC is entitled to all sovereign rights over these South China Sea islands and their relevant waters in accordance with international law, such as under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), is beyond dispute. As the South China Sea islands are part of ROC territory, the ROC government will continue to take action to safeguard this territory and relevant maritime rights.
- The ROC government urges that disputes in the South China Sea be settled peacefully through multilateral consultations in the spirit of setting aside differences and promoting joint development, and on the basis of fairness and equality.
- Taiwan should be included in multilateral dialogue and cooperation with regard to the settlement of related disputes and must not be absent from any peaceful multilateral mechanism in the future. Without Taiwan's meaningful participation, no regional mechanism for dispute resolution or conflict prevention can be truly effective.
- The ROC government also wishes to promote peace and stability by establishing cooperation on nontraditional security issues, including environment protection, disaster relief, humanitarian assistance, scientific research, and combating maritime crime.
For years, the ROC has called on all parties concerned to refrain from taking unilateral action that might escalate tensions; peacefully settle disputes through dialogue and consultation; jointly uphold the freedom and safety of navigation through and of flight over the South China Sea; ensure that all parties concerned are included in negotiations or mechanisms that enhance peace and prosperity in the region. Such values as peaceful settlement of disputes as well as free and safe access to international traffic should apply to both maritime states and inland ones, as they can help to foster greater mutual understanding.
The small group of arbitrators in The Hague might have created an uproar in an already unquiet region and could cause instability in the region to spill over to neighboring regions or even the rest of the world.
The ROC government calls for the peaceful resolution of disputes in the South China Sea through multilateral negotiations that include Taiwan, an important stakeholder and committed peacemaker, on the basis of fairness and equality. This will enable Taiwan to keep working with like-minded countries to advance peace, stability, and prosperity throughout the region.
Kuo-jung Huang
Representative
Taipei Trade and Economic
