,,iii #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #afg ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,june #aj1 #bjac ,mr4 ,menendez 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,rubio1 and ,mr4 ,cardin7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,,resolution ,reaffirming the strong support of the ,united ,states for the peaceful resolution of territorial1 sovereignty1 and jurisdictional disputes in the ,asia-,pacific maritime domains4 ,whereas the maritime domain of the ,asia-,pacific region includes critical sea lines of communication and commerce between the ,pacific and ,indian oceans2 ,whereas the ,united ,states has a national interest in freedom of navigation and overflight in the ,asia-,pacific maritime domains1 as provided for by universally recognized principles of international law2 ,whereas the ,united ,states has a national interest in the maintenance of peace and stability1 open access by all to maritime domains1 respect for universally recognized principles of international law1 prosperity and economic growth1 and unimpeded lawful commerce2 ,whereas the ,united ,states has a clear interest in encouraging and supporting the nations of the region to work collaboratively and diplomatically to resolve disputes without coercion1 without intimidation1 without threats1 and without the use of force2 ,whereas the ,south ,china ,sea contains great natural resources1 and their stewardship and responsible use offers immense potential benefit for generations to come2 ,whereas1 in recent years1 there have been numerous dangerous and destabilizing incidents in this region1 including ,chinese vessels cutting the seismic survey cables of a ,vietnamese oil exploration ship in ,may #bjaa2 ,chinese vessels barricading the entrance to the ,scarborough ,reef lagoon in ,april #bjab2 ,china issuing an official map that newly defines the contested nine-dash line as ,china's national border2 and1 since ,may #h1 #bjac1 ,chinese naval and marine surveillance ships maintaining a regular presence in waters around the ,second ,thomas ,shoal1 located approximately #aje nautical miles northwest of the ,philippine island of ,palawan2 ,whereas the ,association of ,southeast ,asian ,nations 7,,asean7 has promoted multilateral talks on disputed areas without settling the issue of sovereignty1 and in #bjjb joined with ,china in signing a ,declaration on the ,conduct of ,parties in the ,south ,china ,sea that committed all parties to those territorial disputes to reaffirm their respect for and commitment to the freedom of navigation in and over flight above the ,south ,china ,sea as provided for by the universally recognized principles of international law and to resolve their territorial and jurisdictional disputes by peaceful means1 without resorting to the threat or use of force2 ,whereas ,japan and ,taiwan reached an agreement on ,april #aj1 #bjac1 to jointly share and administer the fishing resources in their overlapping claimed exclusive economic zones in the ,east ,china ,sea1 an important breakthrough after #ag years of negotiations and a model for other such agreements2 ,whereas other incidences of the joint administrations of resources in disputed waters in the ,south ,china ,sea have de-escalated tensions and promoted economic development1 such as ,malaysia and ,brunei's #bjji agreement to partner on exploring offshore ,brunei waters1 with drilling in offshore oil and gas fields off ,brunei beginning in #bjaa2 and ,thailand and ,vietnam's agreement to jointly develop areas of the ,gulf of ,thailand for gas exports1 despite ongoing territorial disputes2 ,whereas the ,government of the ,republic of the ,philippines states that it has exhausted almost all political and diplomatic avenues for a peaceful negotiated settlement of its maritime dispute with ,china and in his statement of ,january #bc1 #bjac1 ,republic of ,philippines ,secretary of ,foreign ,affairs ,del ,rosario stated that therefore the ,philippines has taken the step of bringing ,china before the ,arbitral ,tribunal under ,article #bhg and ,annex ,,vii of the #aihb ,convention on the ,law of the ,sea in order to achieve a peaceful and durable solution to the dispute2 ,whereas1 in ,january #bjac1 a ,chinese naval ship allegedly fixed its weapons-targeting radar on ,japanese vessels in the vicinity of the ,senkaku islands1 and1 on ,april #bc1 #bjac1 eight ,chinese marine surveillance ships entered the #ab-nautical-mile territorial zone off the ,senkaku ,islands1 further escalating regional tensions2 ,whereas1 on ,may #h1 #bjac1 the ,chinese ,communist ,party's main newspaper1 ,the ,people's ,daily1 published an article by several ,chinese scholars questioning ,japan's sovereignty over ,okinawa1 where key ,united ,states military installations are located which contribute to preserving security and stability in the ,asia-,pacific region2 ,whereas the ,government of the ,people's ,republic of ,china has recently taken other unilateral steps1 including declaring the ,senkaku ,islands a core interest1 improperly drawing baselines around the ,senkaku ,islands in ,september #bajb1 which the #bjac ,annual ,report to ,congress on ,military and ,security ,developments ,involving the ,people's ,republic of ,china found to be 8inconsistent with international law01 and maintaining a continuous military and paramilitary presence around the ,senkaku ,islands2 ,whereas1 although the ,united ,states does not take a position on the ultimate sovereignty of the ,senkaku ,islands1 the ,united ,states ,government acknowledges that they are under the administration of ,japan and opposes any unilateral actions that would seek to undermine such administration1 affirms that the unilateral actions of a third party will not affect the ,united ,states acknowledgment of the administration of ,japan over the ,senkaku ,islands1 remains committed under the ,treaty of ,mutual ,cooperation and ,security to respond to any armed attack in the territories under the administration of ,japan1 and has urged all parties to take steps to prevent incidents and manage disagreements through peaceful means2 ,whereas1 on ,august #c1 #bjab1 a ,department of ,state spokesperson expressed concern over ,china's upgrading of the administrative level of ,sansha ,city and the establishment of a new military garrison there1 encouraged ,,asean and ,china to make meaningful progress toward finalizing a comprehensive ,code of ,conduct1 and called upon claimants to explore every diplomatic or other peaceful avenue for resolution1 including the use of arbitration or other international legal mechanisms as needed2 ,whereas the ,united ,states recognizes the importance of strong1 cohesive1 and integrated regional institutions1 including the ,east ,asia ,summit 7,,eas71 ,,asean1 and the ,asia-,pacific ,economic ,cooperation 7,,apec7 forum1 as foundation for effective regional frameworks to promote peace and security and economic growth1 including in the maritime domain1 and to ensure that the ,asia-,pacific community develops rules-based regional norms which discourage coercion and the use of force2 ,whereas the ,united ,states welcomes the development of a peaceful and prosperous ,china1 the government of which respects international norms1 international laws1 international institutions1 and international rules2 enhances security and peace2 and seeks to advance a new model of relations between the ,united ,states and ,china2 and ,whereas ,,asean plays an important role1 in partnership with others in the regional and international community1 in addressing maritime security issues in the ,asia-,pacific region and into the ,indian ,ocean1 including open access to the maritime domain of ,asia3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,senate-- 7#a7 condemns the use of coercion1 threats1 or force by naval1 maritime security1 or fishing vessels and military or civilian aircraft in the ,south ,china ,sea and the ,east ,china ,sea to assert disputed maritime or territorial claims or alter the status quo2 7#b7 strongly urges that all parties to maritime and territorial disputes in the region exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would undermine stability or complicate or escalate disputes1 including refraining from inhabiting presently uninhabited islands1 reefs1 shoals1 and other features and handle their differences in a constructive manner2 7#c7 reaffirms the strong support of the ,united ,states for the member states of ,,asean and the ,government of the ,people's ,republic of ,china as they seek to develop a code of conduct of parties in the ,south ,china ,sea1 and urges all countries to substantively support ,,asean in its efforts in this regard2 7#d7 supports collaborative diplomatic processes by all claimants in the ,south ,china ,sea for resolving outstanding maritime or territorial disputes1 in a manner that maintains peace and security1 adheres to international law1 and protects unimpeded lawful commerce as well as freedom of navigation and overflight1 and including through international arbitration1 allowing parties to peacefully settle claims and disputes using universally recognized principles of international law2 7#e7 encourages the deepening of efforts by the ,united ,states ,government to develop partnerships with other countries in the region for maritime domain awareness and capacity building2 and 7#f7 supports the continuation of operations by the ,united ,states ,armed ,forces in the ,western ,pacific1 including in partnership with the armed forces of other countries in the region1 in support of freedom of navigation1 the maintenance of peace and stability1 and respect for universally recognized principles of international law1 including the peaceful resolution of issues of sovereignty and unimpeded lawful commerce4