China has criticised planned maritime boundary discussions between Japan and the Philippines, arguing that the waters involved fall within an area where Beijing claims maritime rights and jurisdiction.
Speaking on Wednesday, Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, said the maritime area under discussion lies east of Taiwan and concerns waters over which China claims sovereign rights and interests.
She said the proposed talks between Japan and the Philippines contravene international law and established principles of international relations, and therefore have no legal validity.
Zhu said people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait share a common national identity and should work together to safeguard China's sovereignty, territorial integrity and broader national interests.
The spokesperson also warned against cooperation between Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities and external actors on issues affecting China's territorial claims.
According to Zhu, any actions that Beijing views as undermining national interests would face opposition from people across the Taiwan Strait and be judged negatively by history.
The comments come after Japan and the Philippines announced formal negotiations to define the maritime boundary between their exclusive economic zones and continental shelves in waters east of Taiwan.
The area has emerged as a new source of regional tension, with China asserting its own maritime rights there.
Earlier this week, China's coastguard conducted patrols in the waters, while Taiwan's coastguard reported monitoring two Chinese vessels operating south-east of Orchid Island.
Japan on Wednesday rejected Taiwan's request for consultations over the planned maritime boundary talks with the Philippines.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said any agreement would apply only to Japan and the Philippines and would not affect third parties.
He was responding to Taiwan's call for talks, arguing that the area involved overlaps with waters in which Taiwan claims interests.
Japan and the Philippines have agreed to begin negotiations on delimiting their exclusive economic zones and continental shelves in accordance with international law.
U.S. President Donald Trump criticised major oil companies, including Chevron and Exxon Mobil, on Monday for earning what he described as excessive pr...
Central Asian countries are adapting their energy strategies as Russia’s fuel sector comes under mounting pressure from Ukrainian drone attacks on o...
Tehran had made plans to strike sites in Ukraine after Kyiv attacked an Iranian cargo ship in the Caspian Sea, a senior Iranian military adviser has s...
U.S. President Donald Trump says Iran has a "last chance" to sign what he described as "a good document", claiming talks are continuing at Tehran's request with backing from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar.
Tehran had made plans to strike sites in Ukraine after Kyiv attacked an Iranian cargo ship in the Caspian Sea, a senior Iranian military adviser has said. Iran refrained from taking action after Kyiv said the strike was a mistake, Mohsen Rezaei told the state IRIB TV channel.
Indonesian rescue teams are searching for 28 people still unaccounted for, three days after a passenger ferry caught fire off the coast of Madura island.
Two firefighting helicopters collided while battling a major wildfire in Greece on Sunday, killing two crew members as emergency services continued efforts to contain fires fuelled by extreme heat and dry conditions across Europe.
Nauru, the world’s third smallest country, has changed its name to Naoero, the Pacific island nation’s President said. The new name corresponds to the spelling and pronunciation in the national language.
Romania blasted a rock outcrop to redirect cooling water from the drought-hit Danube River to its only operating nuclear reactor. The unprecedented measure highlights the growing impact of drought and the region's worsening energy crisis.
U.S. President Donald Trump criticised major oil companies, including Chevron and Exxon Mobil, on Monday for earning what he described as excessive profits as renewed tensions with Iran pushed global energy prices higher.
A cyclosporiasis outbreak, the largest ever recorded in the U.S., has caused its first known deaths, health officials in Michigan said on Monday.
Wildfires near Spokane, Washington, have destroyed at least 700 buildings and forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate. The fires have been burning for a third day around the state’s second-largest city, officials said.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed strengthening the European Union’s external borders and increasing support for Morocco following the arrival of around 50,000 migrants in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta last week.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment