Round 1: Philippines vs. China

Finally after more than two years of hard work, Philippines has won the round 1 against China over the territorial disputes in South China Sea. Philippines vs. China  is a pending arbitration case concerning the legality of China's "nine-dotted line" claim over the South China Sea under the United Conventions on the the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS). [1] Since July 7, 2015, Philippines have been asking the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague to invalidate China's claims.

According to China, it will not participate in the proceedings because the Tribunal has no jurisdiction over China’s “territorial sovereignty over several maritime features in the South China Sea.” However, on October 29, 2015, the tribunal unanimously decided it has the right to hear Philippines’ historic case against China over the West Philippine Sea.

The tribunal rejected China that the tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague has no right to hear the Philippines' case.  The tribunal held that because these two countries are parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, therefore, they are bound by its provisions on the settlement of disputes.

This victory over the jurisdiction of the case will pave the way for an evaluation of the merits of Philippines assertions against China. This is only the start of the battle. The Philippines, the winner of Round 1, only wanted one thing: the tribunal will declare that China's 9-dash line is illegal. 

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippines_v._China