Full coverage: South China Sea Is Indisputable Part of China

Settling the South China Sea dispute through negotiation is not only a consistent policy of the Chinese government, but also a clear agreement between China and the Philippines.

In a joint statement between China and the Philippines in 1995, two sides agreed to settle disputes "through consultations", and eventually to negotiate "a settlement of bilateral disputes." Afterwards, China and the Philippines reaffirmed the consensus in a number of bilateral documents.

In 2002, China and the Philippines, along with other ASEAN members signed the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, and agreed to "resolve their territorial and jurisdictional disputes" through negotiations.

However, the Philippines now claims it has right to initiate the arbitration, as it thinks it is meaningless to continue negotiations to settle disputes over the South China Sea.

But it is a known fact that both countries have never engaged in any direct negotiations on this. China proposed to establish a China-Philippine regular consultation mechanism on maritime issues. So far, there has been no response from the Philippines.