The 2016 Arbitral Award is final and binding. It clearly rejected China’s expansive nine-dash line claims and affirmed the Philippines’ sovereign rights. No amount of name-calling or repetition of “consistent position” can override international law, including UNCLOS, to which China is a party.
It is not the Philippines’ commitment to transparency and the rule of law that undermines peace and stability in the South China Sea. It is China’s illegal occupation and militarization of features, swarming by maritime militia, and repeated aggressive actions against Philippine sovereign rights that do so.
