The United States should not decide its policy on the South China Sea based on what its allies think, and should stick to its promises not to take sides in the dispute, a senior Chinese diplomat said
The United States should not decide its policy on the South China Sea based on what its allies think, and should stick to its promises not to take sides in the dispute, a senior Chinese diplomat said on Thursday ahead of Sino-US security talks.
China has been angered by what it views as provocative US military patrols close to islands China controls in the South China Sea. The United States says the patrols are to protect freedom of navigation.
China claims most of the South China Sea, through which $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei have overlapping claims, as well as close military ties with Washington. In Hague, Manila is contesting Beijing’s claim to an area shown on its maps as nine-dash line stretching deep into the maritime heart of Southeast Asia.
Speaking at a forum ahead of next week’s high-level meetings with US officials in Beijing, Chinese vice foreign minister Zheng Zeguang said his country had every right to protect its sovereignty and maritime rights.
“In fact the United States is not a claimant in the South China Sea dispute, and it said it takes no position on territorial disputes,” Mr Zheng said. “So we hope the US can stick to its promises and not choose sides, but can set its position based on the rights and wrongs of the case rather than whether somebody is an alley.”
