China accuses Manila of ‘flagrantly infringing’ on sovereignty in UN seabed claim

China has strongly condemned the Philippines' recent submission to the United Nations for extended seabed rights in the South China Sea, labeling it a "flagrant infringement" on Chinese sovereignty and a threat to regional peace. The accusation came from China's mission to the UN in a rebuttal issued Thursday, following Manila's presentation to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) earlier this week.

Beijing asserts that the Philippine filing violates its sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction in the disputed waters. China has formally requested that the 21-member commission disregard the submission based on its established rules of procedure. The Chinese mission also denounced Manila's attempt to use the submission as a "pretext to hype up" the 2016 South China Sea arbitral award, a ruling that invalidated China's extensive maritime claims. Beijing has consistently dismissed this ruling as "illegal, null and void."

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flagrantly infringing

The territorial dispute involves overlapping claims in the resource-rich South China Sea, where China asserts sovereignty over nearly all islands and rock features. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei also have competing claims in the waterway. Notably, Malaysia's mission to the UN has also voiced its rejection of the Philippine submission, citing similar overlapping maritime claims.

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illegal, null and void