Lai dismisses Japan-Philippines EEZ concerns, says China has no claim

Taipei, June 18 (CNA) President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) on Thursday dismissed concerns that a plan by Japan and the Philippines to delimit overlapping exclusive economic zones (EEZs) will adversely affect Taiwan, while stressing China has no claim to those waters.

The planned maritime boundary negotiations between Tokyo and Manila "cannot and will not affect the rights of a third country under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties," Lai said in an exchange with foreign media at the Taipei Guest House.

Lai's response followed the May 28 announcement by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., which sparked domestic concern regarding potential adverse effects on Taiwan's maritime rights in partially overlapping waters.

An EEZ is a sea zone extending up to 200 nautical miles from a coastal nation's baseline. Within this area, countries possess sovereign rights to explore and manage resources.

For example, Kuomintang (KMT) Legislator Ko Chih-en (柯志恩) warned earlier this month that excluding Taiwan from the talks -- which cover overlapping waters east and southeast of Taiwan -- could jeopardize the nation's fishing rights, resource access, and maritime operations.

Highlighting Taiwan's existing arrangements, Lai said that the country maintains separate fisheries agreements with Japan and the Philippines, providing established channels for managing fishing rights.

As a sovereign nation and a responsible regional actor, Taiwan operates in accordance with international norms and these bilateral frameworks ensure its national interests and fishermen's rights are fully protected, he added.

The Japan-Philippines move to delimit overlapping EEZs -- part of an effort to elevate their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership -- comes amid rising concerns over Beijing's aggressive activities in the region.

The planned negotiation to delimit their exclusive economic zones and continental shelves aims to "enhance legal certainty in the region," according to a joint Japan-Philippines statement.

Beijing reacted strongly to the move, denouncing it as "completely illegal, null and void," with Chinese Coast Guard vessels launching law enforcement patrols in waters east of Taiwan -- a region China has asserted as falling under its sovereign territory, Reuters reported on June 1.

Lai stated that China's "gray-zone" operations have fueled regional anxiety and signaled a clear intent to project dominance across the Western Pacific.

Since China is not a nation bordering those waters, the president said, Beijing has no legal basis to make any claims there under international law.