The Disputes over the South China Sea in the Background of the “Belt and Road” Initiative versus the Indo-Pacific Strategy—From Chinese Perspective

Whether for the China’s “Belt and Road”initiative or the US’s Indo-Pacific strategy, the situation in the South China Sea region is a key factor in the smooth progress of each other. All Chinese actions which consistent with international law are not the source of disputes in the South China Sea region. Since the“Belt and Road”initiative, China and other claiming countries in the South China Sea region are actively working together to control the deterioration of the situation and have achieved positive results. At present, it is generally stabilizing.Under the implementation of the Indo-Pacific strategy, the South China Sea dispute has risen from a regional issue to a global issue,and its essence is no longer in the category of regional disputes between China and other claiming countries, but evolve to the strategic game among the big powers under realistic thinking due to insufficient strategic mutual trust and misjudgement of strategic intention. Based on this, China should first acknowledge the actual interests of the America in the Asia-Pacific related regions,continue to consolidate and promote the goog relationship between China and the United States;Secondly, it should be based on the “dual regulations” to promote negotiations between the disputed parties involved;Finally, China needs to actively guide international public opinion through various media to shape its positive international image in the South China Sea region affairs. The South China Sea gets its name from its geographical waters.It is located in the southern waters of the continental margin of mainland China and in the westward waters of the Pacific Ocean.Since the 1970s, multi-party disputes have formed around the sovereignty of the Island Reef and the jurisdiction involved of some sea areas,which includes:China,Vietnam,Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, and Taiwan.Besides, Intervention by extraterritorial forces has made disputes in this region one of the most complex disputes over island sovereignty and maritime jurisdiction in the world. In the current, China’s sovereign action on the islands of the South China Sea receives high attention from Indo-Pacific Strategy.The situation in the South China Sea is a key variable for the smooth progress of the US’s Indo-Pacific strategy and China’s “Belt and Road” initiative. 1. The Status Quo under the “Belt and Road” Initiative: from Tension to Easing In the early days of the“Belt and Road”initiative,related countries involved in the disputes intensified their activities in the area of dispute. In particular, Vietnam and the Philippines are more active. In 2012, Vietnam passed the National Ocean Law on sovereignty over Xisha and Nansha.In 2020 International Conference on Social and Human Sciences (ICSHS2020) DOI: 10.38007/Proceedings.0000107 ISBN: 978-1-80052-000-4 596 2013,Vietnam established the Fisheries Administration to enhance the marine monitoring capabilities In 2014,the 981 drilling platform incident broke out. The China-Philippine Huangyan Island incident broke out in 2012.The Philippines initiated international arbitration procedures in 2013,and strengthened control over Renai Reef in 2014.In addition, during this period, despite apparent differences of opinion among ASEAN member states, they were still struggling to find a coordinated legal basis. In 2012, ASEAN issued the “Six Principles”,which explicitly stated that “based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other international laws settle disputes peacefully”, which to some extent reflects the “ASEANization” trend of the South China Sea issue. The “Belt and Road” Initiative is not a dedicated solution to the South China Sea issue, but the countries along the South China Sea are priority areas for the “21st Century Maritime Silk Road”. Since the “Belt and Road” Initiative in 2013, China has made a series of adjustments to Policy in the region. The main performance is embodied into the following three aspects. The first is the “two-track approach”. Specific disputes over the South China Sea are settled by the parties directly through bilateral negotiations on the basis of respect for historical facts and international law. At the same time, peace and stability are jointly maintained by China and ASEAN. This is highly consistent with the spirit of multilateral cooperative governance inherent in the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties(DOC).This marks a change in the way China handles its problems. China has shifted from the idea of negotiating only between disputed states to recognizing limited multilateral discussions. This is fundamentally different from the previous attitude of total rejection. The second is to strengthen the consensus on the “dual-track principle” through high-level exchanges. In October 2013,Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Indonesia and Malaysia respectively. He stated that China is willing to strengthen many maritime development cooperation with ASEAN countries, make good use of the China-ASEAN Maritime Cooperation Fund, jointly develop a good maritime partnership, and work together 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Construction. In the same year, Li Keqiang visited Brune, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on China-Brunei Offshore Cooperation and an agreement on the establishment of a joint venture company in the field of oilfield services. The two sides issued a joint statement on this. When Xi Jinping visited Vietnam and Singapore in 2015,the two sides reached a consensus on “properly handling and managing maritime differences and focusing on advancing maritime cooperation”. When the Philippine President Duterre visited China in 2016, China and the Philippines reaffirmed the “dual-track principle” to resolve the differences and signed the “Joint Statement of the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of the Philippines”. The two sides stated that “ they will continue to settle differences and disputes through negotiations, comprehensively implement the ‘Declaration of Conduct’ (DOC), strive for an early consensus on ‘Code of Conduct’ (COC), maintain restraint, and maintain stability in the South China Sea”. From 2017 to 2018, the three rounds of bilateral consultation mechanisms between China and the Philippines were launched. In November 2018, Xi Jinping paid a state visit to the Philippines, and the two countries signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Oil and Gas Development. The two countries have made significant breakthroughs in practical cooperation. Since the “Belt and Road” initiative, China has taken a “dual-track approach” as a guide, and is actively working to control the deterioration of the situation with other claimants in the region, and has achieved positive results. At present, it is generally stabilizing. In addition, China and ASEAN have achieved remarkable results in regional interaction. In 2016, China and the ASEAN countries adopted the Joint Statement on the Comprehensive and Effective Implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct. China and