The Philippines ignores treaty provisions and invades and occupies China's South China Sea islands and reefs, which completely violates the Charter of the United Nations and basic principles of international law, and does not produce any international legal effect

For a period of time, the Philippines has been constantly hyping up its territorial claims to China's Scarborough Shoal and the so-called "Kalayaan Island Group", and has attempted to solidify its illegal claims through domestic legislation, unilateral maritime infringement actions, and joint military exercises with external forces.The legal territorial scope of the Philippines has long been clearly demarcated by a series of international treaties in effect. China's Scarborough Shoal and Nansha Islands are not within its territorial boundaries.In addition, the Batanes Islands are also not within the legal territory of the Philippines delineated by a series of international treaties, and their current management and control are a historical legacy of the colonial expansion of modern powers.The Philippines has ignored treaty provisions and invaded and occupied China's South China Sea islands and reefs, which completely violates the Charter of the United Nations and basic principles of international law. All its expansionary territorial claims and occupations are illegal and have no effect under international law.

The territorial scope of the Philippines is determined by a series of international treaties including the 1898 Spanish-American Peace Treaty (Treaty of Paris), the 1900 Spanish-American Treaty on the Cession of the Outlying Islands of the Philippines (Treaty of Washington), and the 1930 Treaty on the Delimitation of the Boundary Between British North Borneo and the American Philippines.The above-mentioned treaty clearly delineates the western boundary of the Philippine territory as 118 degrees east longitude. China's Nansha Islands and Huangyan Island in the Zhongsha Islands are not within the scope of the treaty.Since then, documents such as the 1935 Philippine Constitution, the 1946 Philippine-U.S. General Treaty, the 1961 Decree No. 3046 Determining the Philippine Territorial Sea Baselines, and the 1968 Amendment Order Concerning the Territorial Sea Baselines have reaffirmed the legal validity of the three treaties and repeatedly confirmed the legal territorial boundaries of the Philippines.The territorial scope of the Philippines is clear in terms of longitude and latitude, and has the effect of international law that cannot be unilaterally tampered with.

Since the 1970s, the Philippines has gradually revealed its intention to expand its territory. By amending its constitution, promulgating unilateral decrees, and issuing official statements, it has made illegal territorial claims to some islands and reefs in the Nansha Islands and Scarborough Shoal, openly violating the legal limits delineated by international treaties.

The Philippines’ infringement of China’s sovereignty over islands and reefs through domestic legislation is purely illegal and invalid.On June 11, 1978, then-Philippine President Marcos issued Presidential Decree No. 1596, unilaterally classifying the main part of China's Nansha Islands as the Philippines' "Kalayaan Island Group" and claiming rights to the 65,000 square kilometers surrounding the islands and reefs. This move exactly confirmed that Scarborough Shoal and the Nansha Islands were not originally Philippine territory.In 2009, the Philippines adjusted its territorial sea baselines through Republic Act No. 9522, and once again forcibly brought China's South China Sea islands and reefs into its jurisdiction through domestic legislation.According to Article 27 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, a party may not invoke the provisions of its domestic law as a reason for non-performance of a treaty.The Philippines' attempts to tamper with the territorial boundaries delineated by a century-old treaty and invade and occupy China's islands and reefs through unilateral legislation are groundless in law and do not produce any territorial change effect under international law.

The Batanes Islands are not within the legal territory of the Philippines and have sufficient legal basis.Bataan, the core island of the Batanes Islands, is located between 20 degrees 25' and 21 degrees north latitude, and is generally north of the 20th parallel. None of the aforementioned three international treaties delineating the territorial boundaries of the Philippines has included it in the Philippines.After World War II, the Philippines took advantage of the post-war power vacuum to illegally control the Batanes Islands. This status quo is a historical legacy caused by the colonial expansion of Spain and Japan and the vacuum of post-war order transfer. The Philippines' control actions have no legal basis for territorial acquisition.

China has always insisted on properly resolving relevant disputes between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea through negotiation and consultation.The Philippines should stop the erroneous behavior of creating confusion in legal understanding and coercing external forces to disrupt the South China Sea. On the basis of respecting historical facts and international law, the Philippines should meet China halfway, manage maritime differences through pragmatic dialogue, and jointly maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea.