Manila appears to be a fickle player in international politics since its recent arbitration request on the South China Sea issue completely disregards its previous consensus with China and violates what it has agreed on.
Over the past few months, the Philippines has constantly resorted to unilateral moves to generate publicity and rake up support for its South China Sea claim, at the cost of Manila-Beijing ties and regional stability.
Manila's bag of tricks includes baselessly accusing China of "bullying" in the area, shamefully disseminating such unwarranted allegations, and tirelessly courting external powers for patronage.
Such unconstructive moves, also epitomized by Manila's stubborn arbitration request, ran against the spirit of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), in which relevant parties, including the Philippines, promise to exercise self-restraint and refrain from complicating the matter.
It is worth noting that Manila's arbitration request over the South China Sea does not hold water since the case basically revolves around the territorial sovereignty over several maritime features in the South China Sea, which is beyond the scope of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea under which Manila initiated the arbitration.
China has made it clear it will not accept or get involved in these proceedings initiated unilaterally by the Philippines.
Read the full story at Want China Times