US gives backing to Philippines' tack in sea row

The United States has thrown its full support behind the Philippines’ bid for arbitration in the United Nations to settle a territorial dispute with China in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

In remarks before talks with Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario in Washington on Tuesday, US Secretary of State John Kerry reiterated his government’s support for a code of conduct in the West Philippine Sea, home to vital sea lanes and islands believed to be sitting on vast energy and mineral reserves.

“The Philippines is one of our five Asia-Pacific allies and a very, very important relationship at this point in time when there are tensions over the South China Sea, where we support a code of conduct, and we are deeply concerned [about] some of those tensions and would like to see it worked out through a process of arbitration,” Kerry told reporters at the US State Department. 

The West Philippine Sea dispute has long been a matter of keen interest for Kerry who, as senator, “was a moving force” behind a resolution in the US Senate seeking a peaceful settlement of disputes in those waters, Del Rosario said after his meeting with the new top US diplomat.

Del Rosario said Kerry discussed US support for the arbitration proceedings during their meeting and that Kerry “emphasised the importance the US gives to maintaining peace and stability in the area”. “More importantly, Secretary Kerry assured me that the US is committed to supporting the efforts of the Philippines to settle the disputes peacefully and in accordance with the rule of law,” Del Rosario said in a statement released by the Department of Foreign Affairs.

China has refused to take part in the arbitration and dismissed the Philippines’ claims in the West Philippine Sea as full of historical errors and based on a wrong interpretation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Philippine officials say, however, that the arbitration can proceed even without China’s participation. While its rulings are binding on the parties concerned, the UN arbitration tribunal has no powers to enforce them.

Del Rosario’s meeting with Kerry was the first for the two officials since the former Democratic presidential challenger’s appointment to the US Department of State in February.