The document calls on Beijing to “cease its illegal and coercive activities in the South China Sea.”
“The general effect of these maritime claims is that the People’s Republic of China illegally claims sovereignty or some form of exclusive jurisdiction over most of the South China Sea,” said the text, reported by the AFP news agency.
For the United States, “these claims seriously undermine the rule of law in the oceans and numerous universally recognized provisions of international law reflected in the Convention,” referring to a 1982 UN treaty on the law of the sea ratified by China, but not for Washington.
The report also questioned the so-called “nine-dash line” that forms the basis of much of Beijing’s position.
In 2016, an international court ruled in favor of the Philippines on its complaints about China’s claims, which responded with new justifications, even talking about its “historic rights” to the area.
The US State Department document assures that these historical claims “had no legal basis” and that China had not provided details.
Beijing claims four “island groups,” which according to the State Department study did not meet the criteria for baselines under the UN convention.
The South China Sea is home to oil and gas reserves and represents a valuable shipping lane. Around it are located, in addition to China, the Philippines and Vietnam, Taiwan –which Beijing also claims as its own-, Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia.
Source From: Ambito
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