China on Tuesday urged again the Philippines to immediately tow away the military vessel "grounded" at Ren'ai Reef in the South China Sea and restore Ren'ai Reef to its original state of having no personnel or facility on it, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.
On Monday, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs issued a statement saying that on August 5, in the waters adjacent to Ren'ai Reef, China Coast Guard "took blocking and other aggressive maneuvers, including the use of a water cannon" against Philippine supply boats and Coast Guard vessels on a routine resupply mission to the military vessel grounded at Ren'ai Reef.
The Philippines said such actions violate the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 South China Sea arbitration award and infringe upon the Philippines' sovereign rights and jurisdiction.
When asked for comments, an unnamed spokesperson at the Foreign Ministry stressed that Ren'ai Reef is part of China's Nansha Islands. "The Philippines explicitly promised several times to tow away the military vessel deliberately and illegally "grounded" at Ren'ai Jiao (Reef).
However, 24 years have passed and instead of towing it away, the Philippines has sought to repair and reinforce it on a large scale in order to permanently occupy Ren'ai Jiao," the spokesperson said. "The Philippines' action gravely violates international law and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea signed between China and ASEAN countries," the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson also said that the so-called South China Sea arbitration award violates international law, including UNCLOS. "The award is illegal, null and void. China does not accept or recognize it, and will never accept any claim or action based on the award. This position is clear and firm, and is a legitimate step to uphold international rule of law." China insists sovereignty over most of the resource-rich South China Sea, including the Nansha (Spratly) Islands that are also claimed by the Philippines, Taiwan, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam.
Source: Kuwait News Agency
