China says its ready resolve South China Sea dispute through negotiation

Chinese government has declared that it was ready to resolve disputes over South China Sea through peaceful negotiation, after Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that China’s claims to rights in South China Sea had no basis.

Chinese government issued a press statement on Tuesday in which it maintained that China had maritime rights and interests in South China Sea both historically and legally, but said that it was ready to resolve disputes through peaceful negotiation and consultation with the countries directly concerned.

“Pending final settlement, China is also ready to make every effort with the states directly concerned to enter into provisional arrangements of a practical nature, including joint development in relevant maritime areas, in order to achieve win-win results and jointly maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea,” read the statement.

The issue was submitted to Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, Netherlands by the Philippines in 2013.

The tribunal ruled on Tuesday that there was no evidence China had historical rights to waters and resources that fell within its “nine-dash-line”, and that it was violating the

Philippines’s sovereign rights.

In addition to Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei also have competing claims in South China Sea.

Chinese government said in their statement activities of the people of China in South Asia Sea dated back to more than 2,000 years.

And that China was the first to have discovered, named, explored and exploited Nanhai Zhudao – the South China Sea Island.

It said that China had been the first to exercise continuous and peaceful sovereignty and jurisdiction over the islands and relevant waters, and that it therefor had territorial sovereignty and relevant rights and interests in South China Sea.

The statement said that China had recovered and exercised sovereignty over the South China Sea Islands after the end of Second World War, when Japan had taken over the islands.

It said that Chinese government reviewed and updated geographical names of the islands in 1947, and published a map of South China Sea Islands showing Chinese territory in 1948.

The Chinese government also said that People’s Republic of China had been firm in upholding its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in South China Sea since it was founded after the civil war, on October 1, 1949 – rights and interests reaffirmed through binding both national and international law.

“A series of legal instruments, such as the 1958 Declaration of the Government of the People's Republic of China on China's Territorial Sea, the 1992 Law of the People's Republic of China on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, the 1998 Law of the People's Republic of China on the Exclusive Economic Zone and the Continental Shelf and the 1996 Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on the Ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, have further reaffirmed China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea,” read the statement.

China said that it had always firmly opposed “the invasion and illegal occupation” by other countries over the South China Sea Islands and surrounding water.

China said that, nevertheless, it was ready to resolve relevant disputes through peaceful negotiation with other governments involved in the dispute.

“China respects and upholds the freedom of navigation and overflight enjoyed by all states under international law in the South China Sea, and stays ready to work with other coastal states and the international community to ensure the safety of and the unimpeded access to the international shipping lanes in the South China Sea,” read the statement released by Chinese government.