Experts hail China's role in international maritime dispute settlement

This photo carried in a report titled "The Investigation and Assessment Report on Marine Ecology and Environment Status of Huangyan Dao" shows researchers conducting on-site investigation in Huangyan Dao in 2024. (Xinhua)

BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Experts have acknowledged China's role in international maritime dispute settlement and called for global cooperation at a symposium held on Monday in Beijing.

"China plays an important role in addressing international maritime disputes and is at the forefront in advancing mediation," said Stephen Fietta, founder of London-based law firm Fietta LLP.

The international law practitioner commented on how China strives to solve maritime disputes peacefully in accordance with international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Fietta made the remarks during an interview with Xinhua on the sidelines of the 2024 Symposium on International Maritime Dispute Settlement and International Law. Over 200 judges, lawyers, scholars, diplomats and officials, among others, from more than 30 countries including China, Britain, Egypt and the Netherlands and international organizations, attended the event.

Miao Deyu, Chinese assistant minister of foreign affairs, said at the opening ceremony of the symposium that China's proposal to construct a maritime community with a shared future has contributed to promoting global maritime governance.

Miao said countries should adhere to the principle of sovereign equality and maintain international peace and security, promote win-win cooperation and the sustainable development of the ocean, and safeguard international equity and justice and implement the common values of all mankind.

Ahmed Amin Fathalla, a member of the International Law Commission, said the symposium displayed multiple opinions and diversity in fields such as maritime governance and legal framework.

Fathalla told Xinhua that to better tackle maritime dispute challenges, multiple mechanisms including international and regional courts, tribunals and mediation should be jointly used.

This photo carried in a report named "A Survey Report on the Coral Reef Ecosystem of Xianbin Jiao" shows an aerial view of Xianbin Jiao of China's Nansha Qundao. (Xinhua)

At the event, Irish scholar Anthony Carty introduced his book "The History and Sovereignty of the South China Sea," which attests to China's sovereignty over Xisha Qundao and Nansha Qundao, citing official archives mainly from Britain and France.

Carty, a professor with Peking University Law School, said that documents revealed that fishermen from southern China had visited and lived in Nansha Qundao for centuries, and legal experts in Britain and France agreed on China's sovereignty over Xisha Qundao and Nansha Qundao.

In November, the Chinese government delimited and announced the baselines of the territorial sea adjacent to Huangyan Dao, which is a natural step to lawfully strengthen marine management and is consistent with international law and common practices.

Chen Xiangmiao, a researcher with the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, said the move abides by international law including the UNCLOS, adding that "by clarifying the baselines, the legal attributes of the territorial sea can be determined, and the regional order of fishery and environmental protection can be better maintained."

The symposium was co-organized by the Huayang Center for Maritime Cooperation and Ocean Governance and China Oceanic Development Foundation. Attendees discussed issues such as the role of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) in resolving international maritime disputes and the ITLOS's advisory opinion on climate change, among others.

The event aims to provide a platform to discuss international maritime disputes and frontier issues of international law, and establish a long-term mechanism for training international law talent, according to Wu Shicun, one of China's leading researchers on the South China Sea issue and chairman of Huayang.