China tells US, Australia, Japan: Stay out of sea row

MANILA, Philippines - China said yesterday the United States, Australia and Japan should not use their alliance as an excuse to intervene in territorial disputes in the East China Sea and South China Sea, and urged them to refrain from inflaming regional tensions.

On Friday, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and US Secretary of State John Kerry raised the maritime disputes during a trilateral strategic dialogue in Bali, Indonesia.

The trilateral meeting took place on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bali that was attended by regional leaders including President Aquino.

Relations between China and Japan have been troubled in recent years by a row over tiny, uninhabited islands in the East China Sea known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.

In the South China Sea, the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei and China are involved in long-standing sovereignty disputes over the potentially oil- and gas-rich island chain.

A joint statement from the US-Japan-Australia meeting opposed “coercive or unilateral actions” that could change the status quo in the East China Sea and called on claimants to maritime disputes in the South China Sea to refrain from destabilizing actions, according to the State Department website.

“The ministers affirmed the importance of peace and stability, respect for international law, unimpeded trade and freedom of navigation in the South China Sea,” the statement reads.

“They called on claimants to refrain from actions that could increase tensions, to clarify and pursue claims in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and for ASEAN and China to agree on a meaningful Code of Conduct,” it added.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hua Chunying, however, said yesterday that “the United States, Japan and Australia are allies but this should not become an excuse to interfere in territorial disputes, otherwise it will only make the problems more complicated and harm the interests of all parties.”

“We urge the relevant countries to respect facts, distinguish right from wrong, be cautious, and stop all words and deeds that are not beneficial to the proper handling of the issue and undermine regional stability,” she said in comments on the ministry website.

Separately, another Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Qin Gang, voiced China’s opposition to Kishida’s raising of maritime security at an informal breakfast meeting with foreign ministers, saying that it has long been considered inappropriate to discuss issues of political security or sensitive and controversial topics at APEC.

Phl defends allies

The Philippines, meanwhile, defended the US, Australia and Japan.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said that the US, Australia and Japan have interests in the disputed areas due to concerns on the freedom of navigation in the important sea passage.

“A big percentage of world’s trade passes through our waters – the waters that is a subject of dispute right now. Do they have an interest? Yes, they have an interest because of freedom of navigation,” Lacierda said when asked to react to China’s statement asking the three countries not to meddle in the territorial row.

China has been shoring up its presence in disputed areas through the conduct of maritime patrols, triggering concerns about its impact on freedom of navigation.

The Philippines has filed a case against China before the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea, but China has refused to participate in the proceedings.

China wants to settle the dispute through bilateral talks but the Philippines believes the row should be resolved through rule of law and international arbitration. – With Alexis Romero