New Delhi: China’s ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai today said that an international tribunal's ruling denying Beijing's claims in the South China Sea will intensify conflict and even confrontation.
“It will certainly undermine and weaken the motivation of states to engage in negotiations and consultations for solving their disputes. It will certainly intensify conflict and even confrontation," Cui said.
The ambassador also accused the United States of fuelling tensions and militarising the region with patrols and exercises.
Cui further said that China will do everything possible to safeguard the unimpeded flow of commerce and stop any attempt to destabilize the region.
On the other hand, the United States said the ruling should be treated as final and binding.
"We certainly would urge all parties not to use this as an opportunity to engage in escalatory or provocative action," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters in a briefing.
Yesterday, an international arbitration tribunal's ruled against China’s claims over the South China Sea, dismissing it as "null and void." The arbitration tribunal in The Hague backed the Philippines which had approached the court in 2013.
"There was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights to resources within the sea areas falling within the 'nine-dash line'," the Permanent Court of Arbitration said, referring to a demarcation line on a 1947 map of the sea.
Beijing, however, said that it will not accept nor recognise the verdict which it described as having "no binding force".
"The Republic of China solemnly declares that the award is null and void and has no binding force. China neither accepts nor recognizes it," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said its reaction to the ruling.
The South China Sea is a resource-rich strategic waterway through which more than $5 trillion worth of world trade is shipped each year. China has placed runways and radar facilities on new islets in the disputed waters, built by piling huge amounts of sand onto reefs.
China's expansive claims over the South China Sea, contested and mirrored by the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Taiwan have triggered concerns globally, with the US sending its warships in the disputed waters.
