The Philippines will continue to assert the 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea that invalidated the basis of Beijing’s expansive claims in the region, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro said on Monday, July 14.

In a meet-and-greet with the media, the DFA chief maintained the Philippines’ position of adhering to the arbitral victory and relevant international laws, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), in dealing with the territorial and maritime issues with China.

“The Arbitral Award is one of the anchors, basic anchor of our maritime policy together with UNCLOS,” she said.

However, the DFA chief furthered that “strong communication lines” remain open between the two countries and that the Philippines will continue to use multilateralism in dealing with the issue with China.

“We will continue the role of the Department of Foreign Affairs to provide, to play a role in the capacity building of our defense and security agencies,” she stressed.

She also backed the intervention by a Philippine Embassy in Beijing representative during a workshop organized and hosted by a Chinese think-tank in Beijing last July 10.

During the forum, the embassy representative rejected the “troublemaker” tag by China on the Philippines, and asserted the validity of the arbitral win.

“Well, the statements that was released by our Philippine Embassy in Beijing, was it yesterday, are very much coordinated with us, with the Department of Foreign Affairs, so they've done what they are expected to do,” Lazaro said.

She claimed that “a lot of discussions” during the forum on certain issues were “maybe misleading.”

“We have already stated our position in Beijing. We have stated our position here. I even restated that during my intervention in the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Regional Forum in Kuala Lumpur,” the secretary added.

The Philippines celebrated the 9th anniversary of its arbitral victory last July 12, with the diplomatic community in the Philippines commemorating the landmark ruling and calling on China to respect the decision and adhere to international laws.

But China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs repeatedly rejected the decision, calling the arbitral award “nothing but a piece of waste paper that is illegal, null and void, and non-binding.”

“China neither accepts nor recognizes the ‘award,’ and will never accept any claim or action arising from the award. China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea will not be affected by the ‘award’ in any way,” the ministry said.

It also stated that the arbitral award “violates” the basic principles of international law, including UNCLOS, which became the basis for the Philippines’ case against China.