China Rejects Japan-Philippines Maritime Boundary Talks, Calls Them ‘Entirely Illegal And Invalid’

China on Friday objected to a decision by Japan and the Philippines to begin formal maritime boundary negotiations, calling the planned talks “illegal” and asserting its own claims over the waters concerned.

The announcement follows a meeting in Tokyo on Thursday between Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

During the meeting, the two countries agreed to start formal negotiations to delimit the maritime boundary between their exclusive economic zones (EEZs) and continental shelves.

However, Beijing said it has an “exclusive economic zone and continental shelf” in the waters east of Taiwan and strongly opposed the move.

“China is strongly dissatisfied with and firmly opposed to this,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said during a regular press briefing on Friday.

Mao further stated that the planned negotiations between Japan and the Philippines were “entirely illegal and invalid.” She also said China had lodged formal diplomatic protests with both countries.

Japan and the Philippines have moved closer in recent years as both countries face disputes with China over maritime claims.

Japan and China remain involved in territorial and economic disputes in the East China Sea, where coast guard vessels from both sides regularly face off in tense encounters.

The Philippines is also engaged in a long-running dispute with China in the South China Sea.

Beijing has deployed navy and coast guard vessels in the area and has sought to prevent the Philippines from accessing strategically important reefs and islands, leading to a series of confrontations between the two sides.

References: thehindu, wionews