The Latest Controversy: China’s Neighbors Take a Stand Against the New Territorial Map

Southeast Asian countries and Taiwan on Thursday objected to China’s latest version of its territorial map because of new boundaries that reach waters they claim as well in the South China Sea.

Beijing released the map on Monday amid tensions with the United States over Taiwan, and days after China Coast Guard ships formed a cordon to block Philippine supply boats delivering supplies to the BRP Sierra Madre, Manila’s military outpost in Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal), in the disputed waters.

“This latest attempt to legitimize China’s purported sovereignty and jurisdiction over Philippine features and maritime zones has no basis under international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said in a statement.

A 2016 international arbitration ruling had invalidated China’s sweeping claims to the South China Sea, the department noted.

“The Philippines, therefore, calls on China to act responsibly and abide by its obligations under UNCLOS and the final and binding 2016 Arbitral Award,” it said.

The 2023 edition of China’s territorial map covers Taiwan and most of the West Philippine Sea, particularly the contested Spratly Islands. The West Philippine Sea is how Filipinos refer to South China Sea waters within their nation’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Fellow ASEAN members Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam, along with Taiwan, also spoke out against the new map.

“Taiwan, the Republic of China, is a sovereign and independent country that is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China,” said Jeff Liu, spokesman for the foreign ministry of Taiwan, which China considers a renegade province.

“The People’s Republic of China has never ruled Taiwan. These are universally recognized facts and the status quo in the international community,” he said.

China claims nearly the entire South China Sea, including waters within the EEZs of Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan.

In Jakarta on Thursday, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi told reporters that the government had always maintained that any claim must be consistent with UNCLOS.

While Jakarta is not an active claimant in the South China Sea, it has been locked with China in tensions over the Natuna Islands.