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South China Sea Arbitration (Philippines v. China)

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The South China Sea Arbitration (Philippines v. China, PCA case number 2013-19) was an arbitration brought by the Republic of the Philippines against the People's Republic of China under Annex VII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, concerning China's nine-dash line claim and other issues in the South China Sea. China declared in February 2013 that it would not participate and did not appear at any stage, though the tribunal proceeded and issued a binding award in July 2016. The tribunal held that China's historic-rights claims within the nine-dash line have no lawful basis under UNCLOS insofar as they exceed the maritime entitlements the Convention itself allows.

Facts
Decision Year
2016 1
Holding
China's historic-rights claims over maritime areas, as opposed to land masses and territorial waters, within the nine-dash line have no lawful effect unless they are otherwise entitled under UNCLOS; China's non-appearance did not bar the tribunal, which was empowered under Annex VII to proceed and rule on jurisdiction and the merits regardless. 1
Current Status
The award is final and binding under UNCLOS Annex VII, but China has rejected it outright and does not comply with it, so its practical effect on Chinese conduct in the South China Sea remains contested between the parties. 1
Cross-Tradition Connections

Decided By

Sources
1. South China Sea Arbitration (Wikipedia)
WikipediaLead paragraph - entity-description
Quote, Lead paragraph - entity-description
The South China Sea Arbitration (Philippines v. China, PCA case number 2013-19) was an arbitration case brought by the Republic of the Philippines against the People's Republic of China (PRC) under Annex VII (subject to Part XV) of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
View the Source
1. South China Sea Arbitration (Wikipedia)
WikipediaAward date - decision-yearView the Source
1. South China Sea Arbitration (Wikipedia)
WikipediaKey ruling section - holding
Quote, Key ruling section - holding
China's historic rights claims over maritime areas (as opposed to land masses and territorial waters) within the 'nine-dash line' have no lawful effect unless entitled to under UNCLOS.
View the Source
1. South China Sea Arbitration (Wikipedia)
WikipediaNon-participation section - case-status
Quote, Non-participation section - case-status
On 19 February 2013, China declared that it would not participate in the arbitration.
View the Source
1. South China Sea Arbitration (Wikipedia)
WikipediaIn Category: Landmark Cases, Category placement - in-categoryView the Source
1. South China Sea Arbitration (Wikipedia)
WikipediaDecided By: Permanent Court of Arbitration, Lead paragraph - decided-byView the Source

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