10 Years Ago the Philippines Won a Major Victory in the South China Sea. Did It Matter?

A decade ago, in July 2016, an arbitral tribunal in The Hague issued a ruling in a landmark case pitting the Philippines against China over their competing claims to the South China Sea. Under the United Nations’ Law of the Sea, five judges found that most of China’s claims to vast swaths of the South China Sea were invalid, handing a huge victory to the Philippines. Beijing dismissed the verdict as a “nothing but a scrap of paper.” A decade later China hasn’t backed off its illegal claims by a single inch. If anything, the Chinese coast guard is more aggressive than ever. It continues to harass both Philippine coast guard vessels and regular fishermen with water cannons, military-grade lasers, and even ramming attempts. The South China Sea remains one of Asia’s most dangerous flashpoints. This begs the question: What did the verdict actually achieve? And was one of the biggest international lawsuits in history... just a massive waste of time? For more Indo-Pacific analysis, subscribe to The Diplomat: https://thediplomat.com/subscriptions/ Use code DIPASIA10 at checkout to get 10% off. SCRIPT: Sebastian Strangio VOICEOVER: Catherine Putz VIDEO EDITING: Aylin Aly 00:00 intro 01:10 The background 06:53 The ruling 11:27 Did the ruling matter? 14:53 The long arc of international law Music licensed via Shutterstock: PG5CUDKD1CKVFIUL 7DKL52CIMWBEUYWO YASFQ8ZRVGRKZWZ4