The arbitration concerned the role of historic rights and the source of maritime entitlements in the South China Sea. Both the Philippines and China are parties to the Convention, the Philippines having ratified it on 8 May 1984, and China on 7 June 1996.The Philippines initiated arbitration proceedings against China pursuant to. The arbitration award appears to make agreement and accommodation among Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei, and Malaysia more achievable. The Tribunal issues a decision on the Respondent's preliminary objections pursuant to ICSID Arbitration Rule 41(5). The Tribunal issues a procedural order concerning the non-disputing party's application to file a written submission pursuant to ICSID Arbitration Rule 37(2). Ernment of the People's Republic of China on the Matter of Jurisdiction in the South China Sea Arbitration. On 12 July 2016, the Arbitral Tribunal in the South China Sea Arbitration (The Republic of the Philippines v. Find your regional AAA-ICDR office location. Please click on a city for more details.