The English edition of the book The History and Sovereignty of the South China Sea Islands was released by Beijing-headquartered New Star Press, a comprehensive publishing house under China International Communications Group, at the 30th Beijing International Book Fair, which commenced in Beijing on June 20.  

Anthony Carty, the author and an Irish legal scholar, articulated in his book the notion that Western archives had shown historical proofs of China’s sovereignty over the disputed Nansha and Xisha islands. 

Referring to documents from the British Foreign Ministry, Carty believed that Britain had a clear position on the Xisha islands, dating back to the 1930s. 

He said that following close consultation with the French Foreign Ministry, the ministry had an internal discussion. They decided that, as a legal matter, the Nansha islands were Chinese, based on the records they had collected about their own conduct and the conduct of the French and other countries in the region since the 1890s. 

Carty mentioned that he’d spent several decades gathering primary source materials from national archives, specifically from the United Kingdom and France and a few from the United States. 

He noted that those historical archives prove that the legal advising and political decision-making (of these countries) had been influenced by political pressures and strategic considerations, especially the strategic interests of those powerful nations, rather than purely legal perspectives. Through his research, Carty wanted to promote equitable solutions to the South China Sea issue. 

In the book’s preface, Carty wrote that he had conducted the research independently over the past decade without commissions or feedback from Chinese authorities. 

Zhou Jian, former Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Boundary and Ocean Affairs, said that Carty’s review of the diplomatic archives of France, the UK and the U.S. helps to “clarify the facts and understand the context of territorial disputes over the islands.”  

These countries were all involved in territorial disputes over the South China Sea islands at different times, and the archives document their internal considerations, related policies and legal positions concerning these historical events, he said. 

Regarding China’s sovereignty over the South China Sea islands, Chinese scholars have conducted comprehensive and in-depth research. They have demonstrated China’s sovereignty from the angles of history, territory and more, he added. 

The value of this book also lies in the historical materials it discloses, Zhou stressed. 

The original Chinese edition of The History and Sovereignty of the South China Sea Islands was first released by New Star Press in March. 

Anthony Carty (center) poses for a group photo at the release ceremony of his book The History and Sovereignty of the South China Sea Islands in Beijing on June 20 (COURTESY PHOTO)

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon 

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