On July 12, 2026, Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi issued a statement backing the illegal "South China Sea arbitration award" on its tenth anniversary, while attacking China's lawful claims and portraying Japan as a "legitimate stakeholder" in the region.
A spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded immediately, expressing strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition and urging Japan to stop smearing China and undermining regional peace and stability.
The latest provocation triggered by a joint statement from a dozen countries, highlights a troubling trend: the continued politicization and weaponization of a legally void award to contain China's development and destabilize the South China Sea.
A drone photo taken on June 11, 2026, shows the China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel Dong'an patrolling in the South China Sea. (Photo: Xinhua)
A decade later, the award's toxic legacy has only become clearer. It has resolved nothing, fueled tensions, and distorted the very principles of international law it claims to uphold.
A politically motivated farce
The so-called arbitration award was flawed from the outset. The Philippines' unilateral initiation of proceedings violated its bilateral understanding with China and directly contravened the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), which commits all signatories, including the Philippines, to resolving disputes through negotiations.
The tribunal, established amid serious controversy, exercised jurisdiction ultra vires, exceeding its mandate under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), while systematically disregarding China's historic rights and sovereignty over Nanhai Zhudao, the South China Sea Islands, which have been established over centuries of peaceful and effective administration.
The process also violated the fundamental principle of state consent, the basis of all legitimate international dispute settlement mechanisms. It ran counter to pacta sunt servanda, the obligation to honor agreements, because the Philippines had previously committed to bilateral negotiations. In addition, many leading international legal experts, including a former president of the International Court of Justice and a former judge of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, have publicly criticized the award as seriously flawed and legally untenable. The tribunal's composition and rulings were shaped more by political considerations than by legal reasoning, making its impartiality and jurisdiction questionable from the beginning.
Over the past decade, the illegitimate award has not provided a pathway to peace. Instead, it has become a convenient pretext for the Philippines to escalate provocations, repeatedly intruding into China's maritime waters, carrying out illegal construction on Chinese reefs, and colluding with external forces, including Japan, in so-called "maritime delimitation" negotiations.
Meanwhile, external powers, especially the United States, which is not even a party to UNCLOS, have manipulated and backed the arbitration to contain China's rise, fueling confrontation and militarizing the region. The continued invocation of the award merely perpetuates a farce that distorts international law, undermines regional maritime governance, and endangers navigation safety and fishermen's livelihoods.
China's firm and consistent position
China's position on the arbitration has been clear, consistent, and firm for the past decade. As reaffirmed in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' solemn statement on July 12, 2026, China does not accept or recognize the so-called award, which is illegal, null and void, and has no binding force. China's sovereignty over Nanhai Zhudao, comprising the Dongsha, Xisha, Zhongsha, and Nansha islands, and its relevant maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea are rooted in historical facts and international law.
China was the first to discover, name, and continuously exercise sovereignty over these islands and their adjacent waters, a fact widely recognized by the international community over the centuries.
Moreover, China made an optional exceptions declaration in 2006 under Article 298 of UNCLOS, explicitly excluding maritime delimitation disputes from compulsory dispute settlement procedures. Territorial sovereignty issues, by their nature, fall outside the scope of UNCLOS. Any arbitration that touches upon such matters is therefore an overreach that China rightfully rejects. The award has not affected, and will never affect, China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests under any circumstances.
Despite these provocations, China remains committed to resolving disputes through peaceful dialogue and consultation with the countries directly concerned, on the basis of respect for historical facts and in accordance with international law. This approach fully reflects the spirit of the DOC and the shared aspiration of China and ASEAN member states for regional peace and stability. China has consistently exercised restraint and professionalism in responding to infringements while firmly safeguarding its rights.
China urges the Philippines, Japan, and their external backers to abandon such meaningless political manipulation. Continued hyping of the illegal award runs counter to the regional trend toward peace and prosperity and disregards the genuine interests of its people. As the Chinese Foreign Ministry has warned, any attempt to challenge China's lawful rights and interests or undermine stability in the South China Sea is doomed to fail.
Reporter: Guo Zedong
