MANILA, Philippines — Following its new position in the South China Sea maritime disputes, the United States has made itself a defender of the July 2016 arbitral ruling that sided with the Philippines, an analyst said.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier released a statement to mark the fourth anniversary of the landmark ruling that invalidated Beijing's nine-dash line claim in the disputed sea. His statement explicitly sided with Southeast Asian nations, including the Philippines.
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Julio Amador III, fellow at Manila-based think tank Asia Pacific Pathways to Progress, noted that the US explicitly cited the arbitral ruling despite being a non-state-party to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
"It unequivocally expresses support for the maritime claims of the ASEAN claimants, all of which (Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and even Indonesia) are explicitly mentioned," Amador said in an online exchange with Philstar.com.
With Washington's latest policy declaration in the South China Sea, the Philippines could capitalize on the diplomatic support of its ASEAN neighbors and the US, along with its allies, he added.
"The US now also cares about the coastal states' maritime entitlements, not just the user states' navigational rights, in the South China Sea," Amador said.
This latest development also suggests that the arbitral award would continue to live on even if the present or future Philippine administrations would not actively enforce it.
'Strong message to China'
Retired Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio said the statement of US Secretary of Mike Pompeo that most of Beijing's claims in the South China Sea are "completely unlawful" sends a "very strong" message to China.
"This sends a very strong message to China that the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei have the backing of the US in protecting their exclusive economic zones in the South China Sea," Carpio said in a virtual conference Tuesday.
Citing the UNCLOS, Carpio stressed that all states have the freedom of navigation and overflight in the EEZs and the high seas of the world.
According to Carpio, freedom of navigation and overflight operations are the "most robust and most powerful enforcement" of the arbitral ruling.
"If China persists in its aggressive encroachment of the EEZs of the ASEAN coastal states, then ASEAN coastal states can respond by joining the outside naval powers in their freedom of navigation and overflight operations in the exclusive economic zones and high seas of the South China Sea," Carpio said.
'Carefully crafted'
Gregory Poling, director of Washington-based Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, described the latest US position on the South China Sea as a "big deal."
"It's carefully crafted to avoid overstepping the 2016 arbitral award and maintains American neutrality on sovereignty," Poling said.
According to Poling, this latest move from Washington would be the first step in a long-term campaign in supporting its partners and highlighting Chinese illegal behavior in the South China Sea.
In the context of the Philippines' arbitral award, Pompeo pointed out that China has no lawful maritime claim over areas the tribunal ruled to be in Philippine EEZ or continental shelf, Beijing's harassment of Philippine fisheries and offshore energy development is unlawful and China does not have a legal claim to Mischief Reef of Second Thomas Shoal.
US Assistant Secretary of State David Stilwell reiterated Pompeo's statement that China "has no right to bully Southeast Asian states for their offshore resources."
Stilwell echoed the remarks of Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. that the arbitral ruling represents a victory not just for the Philippines but also for law-abiding nations.
The US official noted that China continued to dismiss the arbitral ruling as "nothing more than a piece of paper."
"For our part, the United States is resolved to protect our vital interests and those of our allies and friends. We are building our military capabilities. We are vigilant. We are exercising and operating wherever international law allows," Stilwell said in a statement.