BEIJING, May 17 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines is carelessly throwing away a chance offered by China to jointly solve the disputes over the South China Sea issue through dialogue and consultation, some analysts argue, as the Philippines has sought out the help of the international arbitration tribunal.
The Philippines's pursuit of such an arbitration is completely self-defeating, as Rod Kapunan, a columnist for Philippine newspaper The Standard, wrote in the daily on Saturday.
"We completely deprived ourselves of the opportunity once offered to us by China, like a joint cooperation to explore ... and develop the areas," he said in his article.
Submitting the case to the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) at The Hague was a lose-lose proposition, which "could only justify the permanent presence of U.S. forces in Philippine territory," he said, noting that the Aquino administration committed a serious offense by doing that.
The Philippine columnist's remarks do reflect some facts.
China has proposed the idea of shelving differences and seeking joint development as a way to solve the disputes over islands, rocks, shoals and other land features across the South China Sea.
China insists on properly solving the disputes in a peaceful way through direct dialogue and consultation with the related countries. China and the related countries, including the Philippines, have reached agreements and consensus in this regard, which could boost their direct negotiations.
If the Philippines insists on choosing arbitration, what Kapunan described as a "ticking bomb," to solve the issue, it will face the consequences, sweet or bitter.
China has announced its position of non-acceptance and non-participation in the arbitration unilaterally initiated by the Philippines.
China has reiterated that it has legitimate rights under international law to reject the arbitration, as the tribunal has no jurisdiction over the territorial claims to several islands, rocks, shoals and other land features across the South China Sea.
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