China claims right to air defence on South China Sea

Rejecting international appeals to implement the verdict, Defence Minister General Chang Wanquan said China will not accept any proposition or action based on the decision by the arbitral tribunal. 

“China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime interests in the South China Sea will not be affected by the ruling under any circumstances,” Chang said here. China has refused to abide by the ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) tribunal in The Hague. It has said the Philippines’ claim over parts of the SCS is groundless from the perspectives of either history or international law. 

“The Chinese navy can operate in South China Sea at any time as the area belongs to China. Certain country has sent aircraft carrier fleet to the South China Sea,” Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said. “We do not recognise or implement the award. We hope it is only a white paper and it will not be enforced. Just dump it into garbage or put it in a shelf or put it in archives and let us come back to the track of negotiations,” he said. He said that China hopes to go back to the negotiating table with the Philippines. “This is the policy of the Chinese government and hope that neighbouring countries in the South China Sea and ASEAN countries jointly uphold peace and stability of the South China Sea and freedom of navigation and over flights,” he told reporters. 

As to whether China will set up an Air Defence Identification Zone over the SCS to force aircraft flying in the area to seek permissions from Beijing, the assistant foreign minister said China “has the right to do so.” 

Meanwhile, a Taiwanese warship set sail for the South China Sea today “to defend Taiwan’s maritime territory”, a day after an international tribunal ruled China has no historic rights in the waterway and undermined Taipei’s claims to islands there. 

President Tsai Ing-wen rallied troops on the deck of the frigate, saying Taiwanese were determined to “defend their country’s rights”, before the warship headed for Taiwan-controlled Taiping island in the Spratly island chain from the southern city of Kaohsiung.