China warns US against interfering in South China Sea issue

CHINA-JAPAN
CHINA-JAPAN

K J M Varma
Beijing, Sep 21 (PTI) Ahead of President Barack Obama's
meeting with ASEAN leaders in New York on Friday, China
Tuesday warned the US against meddling in a territorial
dispute in the South China Sea on behalf of its Asian allies.
"We firmly oppose any country having nothing to do with
the South China Sea issue getting involved in the dispute,"
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told a media
briefing here.
She stated this in response to a question on Obama's
upcoming meeting with ASEAN leaders in New York and
possibility of a joint statement concerning the South China
Sea issue involving China.
Recently, China resented US Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton's remarks calling on Beijing to solve its disputes
over a host of islands with several countries including
Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Philippines. She also asserted
that the US had its own national interest as it involved
freedom of navigation.
China opposes the internationalisation of the maritime
issues, especially in South China Sea, Jiang said, adding the
US intervention will only complicate rather than help solve
the issue.
Her remarks came as Japan staved off heavy pressure from
China over the fortnight-long detention of the captain of a
Chinese fishing trawler by Tokyo on the ground that his vessel
collided with and damaged Japanese Coast Guard boats off the
Diaoyu islands, called Senkaku islands by Japan.
The islands administered by Japan are also claimed by
China and Taiwan.
China, which put off all its contacts at various levels
with Japan, has also made preparations to drill the Chunxiao
oil and gas field in retaliation, over which Japan claims its
right as well.
Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan has already said Japan
would take counter measures if Beijing went ahead with its
plans to resume the drilling. (More) PTI KJV
MRD


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