An aerial photo of Huangyan Dao Photo: VCG

A Chinese envoy on Monday deposited to the UN the Statement on the Baselines of the Territorial Sea Adjacent to Huangyan Dao (also known as Huangyan Island) and the Chart, the Chinese Mission to the UN said in a press release.

The move demonstrates China's determination to maintain its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights by fulfilling its obligations under international law, a Chinese expert told the Global Times Tuesday.

Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the UN, on behalf of the government of the People's Republic of China, deposited the Statement of the Government of the People's Republic of China on the Baselines of the Territorial Sea Adjacent to Huangyan Dao and the related Chart to Stephen D. Mathias, acting under-secretary-general for legal affairs of the United Nations and UN legal counsel. 

The statement and associated nautical charts will be published on UN websites.

Huangyan Dao has always been China's territory, it said. On November 10, in accordance with international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, and the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, the Chinese government delimited and announced the baselines of the territorial sea adjacent to Huangyan Dao, the press release said.

This is a natural step by the Chinese government to lawfully strengthen marine management and is consistent with international law and common practices, it added.

According to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the coastal state shall deposit a copy of the chart or list of geographical co-ordinates of its baselines of the territorial sea with the UN secretary-general.

The deposit is not only an international practice by China as a state party to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in fulfilling its obligations under the Convention, but also a legitimate activity to defend its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, the press release said. 

China's move is primarily in line with international practices to fulfill its obligations as a contracting party to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, Ding Duo, a deputy director of the Institute of Maritime Law and Policy at China's National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times on Tuesday. At the same time, it also demonstrates China's exercising of territorial sovereignty and administrative jurisdiction over Huangyan Dao, which is an indisputable territory.

Formally submitting the statement and chart to the UN is a very important means of asserting China's claims to rights, Chen Xiangmiao, director of the World Navy Research Center at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times.

The significance of doing so is to assert that the sovereignty of Huangyan Dao belongs to China. The second point of significance is to clarify the corresponding rights associated with the waters surrounding the island, including territorial sea and other maritime rights granted by the convention, Chen noted.

In November, the Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr signed two laws -the Philippine Maritime Zones Act and the Philippine Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act, attempting to solidify the illegal ruling of the 2016 arbitration case through domestic legislation, illegally including China's Huangyan Dao and most of the islands and reefs in the Nansha Islands and their related waters in its maritime zones.

In response to maritime provocations from the Philippines, China has various countermeasures at its disposal. Ding believed that China will maintain its own pace, including conducting military readiness exercises at sea, and regular patrols by the China Coast Guard.

Furthermore, the submission reflects China's fulfillment of its obligations in accordance with the provisions of the convention, which precisely demonstrates China's compliance with and respect for international law, Ding pointed out. 

"After the release of these documents on the UN website, the international community can have a more direct and clearer understanding of the scope and limits of China's maritime rights in the waters near Huangyan Dao. This will have a positive effect on flag states continuing to utilize shipping routes in a safe, orderly, and legal manner in the South China Sea, on the condition of respecting China's territorial sovereignty over Huangyan Dao and its associated maritime rights," he stressed.