G7 ministers hit China coercive actions at sea

MANILA, Philippines — The seven most powerful democracies in the world collectively called the Group of Seven (G7) and the 27-member European Union (EU) have again slammed China for its “illicit, provocative, coercive and dangerous actions” in the South China Sea and East China Sea.

In a statement following their meeting in Charlevoix, Quebec in Canada on Friday, G7 and EU foreign ministers said that China was trying to “alter the status quo, in particular by force or coercion…”

Comprising the G7 are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The G7 and the EU, in their statement, said they were reaffirming their “steadfast commitment to contribute towards a free, open and secure maritime domain based on the rule of law that strengthens international security, fosters economic prosperity and ensures the sustainable use of marine resources.”

They also said they recognize the role of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as the legal framework for governing all activities in the oceans and the seas.

“We underscore the importance of freedom of navigation and overflight and other internationally lawful uses of the high seas and the exclusive economic zones as well as to the related rights and freedoms in other maritime zones, including the rights of innocent passage, transit passage and archipelagic sea lanes passage, as provided for under international law,” the G7 and EU foreign ministers said.

“We share a growing concern at recent, unjustifiable efforts to restrict such freedom and to expand jurisdiction through use of force and other forms of coercion, including across the Taiwan Strait and in the South China Sea, the Red Sea and the Black Sea,” they said.

“We condemn China’s illicit, provocative, coercive and dangerous actions that seek unilaterally to alter the status quo in such a way as to risk undermining the stability of regions, including through land reclamations and building of outposts, as well as their use for military purpose,” they added.