US EUROPE AFRICA ASIA 中文
World / US and Canada

Arbitral court not a UN agency

By Wang Qingyun (China Daily) Updated: 2016-07-14 07:18

The United Nations said on Wednesday it has nothing to do with the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which set up a tribunal that handled the South China Sea arbitration case the Philippines filed unilaterally in 2013.

In a post on its Sina Weibo micro blog, the UN said the PCA is a "tenant" of the Peace Palace in The Hague, "but has nothing to do with the UN".

The UN said the International Court of Justice, its principal judicial organ set up according to the Charter of the UN, is also located in the Peace Palace.

The construction of the palace was managed by the Carnegie Foundation, which is still the building's owner and manager, according to the Peace Palace website.

The UN said it makes an annual donation to the foundation for using the Peace Palace.

When asked about the Arbitral Tribunal's case's ruling on Tuesday, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Tuesday "The UN doesn't have a position on the legal and procedural merits" of the South China Sea arbitration case.

In response, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said China will, as always, observe the goals and principles set up by the Charter of the UN, and solve maritime disputes peacefully by having talks with countries directly involved, "on the basis of firmly guarding China's territorial sovereignty and maritime interests".

Lu said: "China is a responsible member of the international community. It's an important advocate and loyal implementer of the UN's cause to push forward the international rule of law."

Li Jinming, a professor of international maritime law at Xiamen University, pointed out that the use of terms such "UN tribunal" or "UN-backed tribunal"-frequently reported by Western media-is incorrect, as they confuse the PCA with the UN's ICJ.

Wang Hanling, a maritime law researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said some countries and news media are "deliberately" confusing the tribunal with the ICJ.

Trudeau visits Sina Weibo
May gets little gasp as EU extends deadline for sufficient progress in Brexit talks
Ethiopian FM urges strengthened Ethiopia-China ties
Yemen's ex-president Saleh, relatives killed by Houthis
Most Popular
Hot Topics

...