'They have no position': China's note lands mid-speech; Philippines defence chief fires back on stage

NEW DELHI: Philippines defence secretary Gilberto C Teodoro publicly rebuked China at a defence forum in Seoul after a note outlining Beijing's position on the South China Sea arbitration was handed to him while he was speaking.Teodoro was addressing maritime challenges and the South China Sea at the Seoul Defence Dialogue when a man approached him from behind and placed a sheet of paper on the table. Teodoro paused, picked up the note and asked whether it had come from China before reading parts of it aloud. "I have a note here. I think this is from China. And may I read it?" he said.As Teodoro read the note, he interrupted its argument with a blunt response: "They have no position." The note stated that China's position on the South China Sea arbitration was "clear, consistent and firm" and argued that the arbitration violated fundamental principles of international law.Teodoro then challenged the legal argument contained in the note, referring to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), under which the Philippines had brought the arbitration case against China. "So what you signed unclause. You mean violates international law. That's what you mean," he said.The note further described the arbitration ruling as illegal, null and void and said it had no binding force. The 2016 arbitration tribunal rejected China's expansive historic-rights claims in the South China Sea and found no legal basis for Beijing's claims to resources within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone. China has rejected the ruling and maintained that the tribunal had no jurisdiction.The Philippine defence chief then turned the incident into a broader criticism of Beijing's conduct, questioning the decision to deliver the message while he was addressing an international audience."How can you deal with a country in an international forum beyond the question asked to me disrespecting the organizers of this forum, how do you expect to deal with it civilly?" Teodoro said.He argued that the episode went beyond the legal dispute and amounted to a lack of respect for the forum's organisers and South Korea, which was hosting the event."If this is a Chinese position sent to me, it not only disrespects international law throwing uncloths to the floor and trampling upon it, but it also disrespects the basic decency accorded that should be accorded to our most gracious hosts, the Republic of Korea and the rest of the audience here," he said.Teodoro then accused China of using pressure against the Philippines, saying, "Perhaps basic decency and behavior is what China needs to do now."He said he would retain the note as a reminder of what he described as Beijing's weakness in making its case."I will keep this paper as a memento of how desperate China is and how ineffective its position is in the face of a free audience," Teodoro said.He also directed a sarcastic remark at the person who had handed over the note, saying, "You just done your country a great service. Thank you. And I hope you don't suffer in a gulag for it."What initially appeared to be a deliberate interruption was later reported to have resulted from a mix-up.According to forum organisers, the note had been sent by a Chinese military attache with the Chinese Embassy in Seoul, Yonhap News Agency reported. The attache reportedly handed it to a forum staff member with instructions that it be passed to Teodoro.The staff member apparently mistook it for a message from Teodoro's own delegation and handed it to him while he was speaking.Teodoro targets China's South China Sea claimsTeodoro used the episode to reiterate Manila's concerns over China's activities in the South China Sea, particularly in areas that the Philippines considers part of its exclusive economic zone."I think it is well known to the public, to everyone here, about the Philippine situation where we face challenges daily from the People's Republic of China, which tries to occupy and illegally assert its presence over our territory and especially our exclusive economic zone," he said.He said the Philippines had responded by strengthening its defence arrangements and alliances."We live in a very interconnected world, and there is no right for any state of that matter to appropriate an international common for its exclusive use or right, contrary to what the international norms clearly state," Teodoro said.China later sought to distance itself from the circumstances surrounding the note while reiterating its established position on the arbitration case."We advise some people in the Philippines to stop trying to stir up trouble, stop undermining bilateral ties and stability in the South China Sea," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, without naming Teodoro.The incident, which began with a single sheet of paper being placed on Teodoro's table, quickly became a public confrontation over China's position on the South China Sea and the Philippines' refusal to accept Beijing's claims.Catch the latest World News and Live updates. 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