The Philippines has conducted its legal arguments against China before an international arbitral court, saying it is entrusting its fate to a court that it believes will uphold the rule of law and not the "quaint aspiration of a time now past." In a speech before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Foreign Affairs Secretay Albert del Rosario said whatever is decided by the tribunal would have an impact on the fate of the Philippines, the region and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The Philippine team in The Hague, led by Del Rosario and Solicitor General Florin Hilbay, wrapped up its oral arguments on the case it filed before the tribunal seeking to reaffirm the Philippines’ entitlements in the West Philippine Sea and questioning China’s massive claim over almost the entire South China Sea and the West Philippine Sea.

Calica, A. (2015, December 1). Phl rests case in sea row. The Philippine Star, pp. 1, 12.