During the UNGA's 69th annual high-level meeting in New York, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del Rosario said the Philippines invited a State Party to settle their maritime disputes peacefully through the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), including its provisions on dispute settlement, particularly arbitration.
"However, it has refused to join us and has continued to unilaterally embark on an expansionist claim that violates the legitimate rights of the Philippines and other littoral neighbours under UNCLOS such as their Exclusive Economic Zones and Continental Shelves," Del Rosario told the UN General Assembly without mentioning China by name.
"Instead of peacefully resolving the maritime disputes within the framework of UNCLOS, said State embarked on a series of dangerous, reckless and forceful activities in an attempt to impose unilateral change in the maritime status quo of the South China Sea," he added.
Del Rosario then enumerated Beijing's unilateral activities that escalated the tensions and threatened the peace and stability of the South China Sea.
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