China trashes international law as 14 countries plus EU reject its expansive South China Sea claims

Fourteen countries, led by the United States, have on Jul 12 reaffirmed that China’s expansive claims in the South China Sea have no legal basis under international law, marking the 10th anniversary of a landmark arbitration ruling that Beijing continues to reject.

A joint statement issued by the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, the Philippines, Canada, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovenia said the Jul 12, 2016 ruling by an arbitral tribunal constituted under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) remains “final, legally binding and definitive”.

The 27-member European Union has issued a separate statement describing the decision as a “landmark” ruling in the peaceful settlement of maritime disputes.

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