Court begins hearing Philippines, China dispute over South China Sea

The Philippines argued at a closed hearing on July 7 that an international court should intervene in its dispute with China over the right to exploit natural resources and fish in the South China Sea. 

Although China has declined to participate, the case at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague is being closely watched by Asian governments and Washington, given rising regional tensions as Chinese naval power grows. 

A panel of five judges will hear arguments this week and decide whether the treaty-based court has jurisdiction. 

Manila filed suit at the court in 2013, seeking to enforce its right to exploit waters in a 200-nautical mile "exclusive economic zone" off its coast, as defined under the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea. 

The Philippines argues that the arbitration court is the correct venue for resolving disputes covered by the treaty, which both countries have signed. 

"The Philippines believes the court has jurisdiction over all the claims it has made," said lawyer Paul Reichler, representing the Philippines. 

He said he was confident the court would ultimately rule in the Philippines' favour. 

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China did not accept the court's jurisdiction and would not participate. 

"China opposes any form of arbitration process proposed and promoted by the Philippines," Hua told a daily news briefing in Beijing on July 7. 

In a position paper in December, China argued the dispute was not covered by the treaty because it was ultimately a matter of sovereignty, not exploitation rights. 

China claims most of the South China Sea. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei claim overlapping parts of the...