The move, which has irked Beijing, came a year after Manila announced its intent to go to arbitration before the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

The Philippines is protesting China’s claims over disputed waters, including the Spratly Islands and the Scarborough Shoal (known as Huangyan Island in China).

Philippines officials claim that China’s activities in parts of the South China Sea have violated its sovereignty, and the call for arbitration is a last resort as previous government-to-government talks have failed to resolve the dispute.

China