Upholding sovereignty defends rule of law: China Daily editorial

In the South China Sea, the rule of law is the bedrock of peace and stability. On Tuesday, the People's Liberation Army Southern Theater Command and the China Coast Guard conducted patrol operations in the waters surrounding China's Huangyan Island.

And Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian confirmed last month that Chinese researchers had conducted a comprehensive survey for a deeper understanding of the island's ecosystem.

Turning a blind eye to the legitimacy of these moves, the Philippines has repeatedly attempted to discredit them through misleading narratives.

Since June, the PLA Southern Theater Command has increased patrols in these territorial seas as a legal and necessary countermeasure against repeated violations and provocative acts by the Philippines and some external forces. China is simply exercising its right to self-preservation and legal administration over its own land and waters.

The Chinese Ministry of Natural Resources released the "Assessment Report on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea — Achievements, Positioning, and Challenges" on Tuesday. The report lays bare the hypocrisy underlying the so-called "rules-based order" pretext that the Philippines and its allies invoke to encroach upon China's core interests in the South China Sea.

The report was released against the backdrop of the continued abuse of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea by the Philippines to promote its illegal "South China Sea arbitration case".

Let's be clear: The 2016 arbitration was a political farce disguised as a "legal proceeding". China's position of nonacceptance and nonparticipation was a defense of the integrity of UNCLOS itself.

As the report elaborates, the Philippines' core strategy relies on legal manipulation. It packaged a dispute over "territorial sovereignty" — which UNCLOS explicitly has no jurisdiction over — as a dispute over maritime rights. By ruling on maritime rights, the illegal tribunal implicitly ruled on sovereignty, overstepping its mandate.

This is a "procedural trick", a weaponization of international law that undermines the credibility of UNCLOS and threatens to turn the oceans into a theater of confrontation.

Since joining UNCLOS nearly 30 years ago, China has been one of the most consistent and faithful practitioners of the Convention. It has walked the walk by fully implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea and steadfastly advancing the consultations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea.

While the Philippines plays tricks with the law, China encourages dialogue. While the United States distorts "freedom of navigation" to justify its gunboat diplomacy, China promotes the Global Security Initiative focused on shared security.

The report rightly criticizes those who preach a "rules-based international order" while blatantly practicing double standards. Certain countries use UNCLOS like a menu — picking and choosing provisions that suit their "freedom of navigation" militarism while ignoring rules that protect coastal state sovereignty. They misuse terms such as "international waters" to obfuscate the legal concept of an Exclusive Economic Zone, and they encourage the Philippines to act as a proxy in a destabilizing game.

It is time for all parties to stop indulging in such tricks and return to the negotiating table to accelerate the finalizing of the COC in the South China Sea. As the common home of regional countries, the South China Sea should become a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation.