MANILA, Philippines — Chinese President Xi Jinping warned the United States to stay out of disputes over the Spratly Islands during his Saturday, November 16, meeting with US President Joe Biden in Peru, where he laid out multiple warnings on bilateral relations, including four "red lines" that the US must not cross.
In what Chinese officials characterized as a "candid, profound and constructive" discussion, Xi explicitly cautioned against US involvement in the South China Sea.
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"The United States should not get involved in bilateral disputes over the relevant islands and reefs of Nansha Qundao, nor should it aid or abet the impulsion to make provocations," Xi said according to a Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs news release.
Nansha Qundao is the term Beijing uses to refer to the Spratlys Islands, an archipelago of more than 100 small islands and reefs in the South China Sea claimed in whole or in part by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan.
Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea despite a 2016 arbitral ruling won by the Philippines that declared this claim has no legal basis. The Philippines claims the northeastern section of the resource-rich Spratlys, which it calls the Kalayaan Island Group.
Xi insisted maritime disputes should be handled through "dialogue and consultation between states concerned," signaling continued resistance to multilateral approaches to the South China Sea conflict. "China firmly upholds its territory, sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea," he said.
Heightened tensions. The meeting, which took place on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Peru, comes amid escalating tensions between Beijing and Manila.
China on November 9 protested two new laws in the Philippines that define Manila's maritime zones in accordance with international law. Shortly after, it countered by publishing baselines for Scarborough Shoal, a feature that falls within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone. Both countries have summoned each others' ambassadors following the two incidents.
According to China's foreign affairs ministry, Biden allegedly assured Xi that the US "does not seek conflict" with China.
Meanwhile, according to a statement from the White House, Biden emphasized his country's "commitment to upholding international law and freedom of navigation, overflight, and peace and stability in the South China Sea and East China Sea."
China's warning. Xi also outlined what called "red lines" in US-China relations during the meeting. According to the Chinese foreign ministry statement, Xi warned these four areas "must not be challenged" by Washington:
First was the Taiwan question, which Xi emphasized was a core interest of China. According to China's version of the meeting, Xi told Biden that "cross-Strait peace and stability and 'Taiwan independence' separatist activities are irreconcilable as water and fire." He urged the US to handle the Taiwan issue with "extra prudence."
Second was what Beijing frames as issues of democracy and human rights. While the statement did not elaborate, China has consistently rejected Western criticism of its human rights record as interference in its domestic affairs.
Third was China's path and system of governance, with Xi saying that attempts to reshape China according to US preferences would be firmly rejected.
Fourth was China's right to develop, with Xi stating that "the Chinese people's right to development is not to be deprived of or ignored." He warned against what he called the "overstretch" of national security concepts to "constrain and contain" China.
Xi said these red lines form "the most important guardrails and safety nets" for bilateral relations between the two nations.
Biden, according to the White House statement, responded by assuring that "the United States does not seek to change China's system" and reaffirming the US commitment to the one-China policy.
However, the US president also called for an end to what he described as "destabilizing PRC military activity around Taiwan."
Continuity in PH-US relations. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has expressed confidence that Philippine-US relations will remain strong despite the upcoming leadership change in Washington.
"I don't think it will change. The global forces that are our oldest treaty partner, that doesn't change," Marcos said on November 11 when asked about US-Philippine relations following Trump's victory in the recent US elections. — with reports by Agence France-Presse