China: South China Sea construction not militarization

The comments in a bilateral meeting Thursday on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Manila came after the US sparked an angry reaction from China last month by sailing a warship close to an artificial island in waters that China views as its own territory.

Washington was testing Beijing with its insistence on “freedom of navigation” patrols in the waterway, Mr Liu said.

“HONG KONG ““”“China has rejected claims that it is militarizing the disputed South China Sea, saying it needs to build facilities on artificial islands and reefs to protect them.

“We don’t take sides on the competing territorial claims in the South China Sea, but we have acknowledged that land reclamation and construction activity that’s undertaken by China and other claimants raises tensions in the region”.

In October, the USS Lassen, a guided-missile destroyer, sailed around one of them.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak put in perspective that when it comes to freedom of navigation and overflight, all countries agreed that there should not be any interference and that there should be respect. “One should never link the military facilities with efforts to militarize the South China Sea”, Liu added.

Obama on Friday said the disputed region would be a major focus of summit meetings among world leaders this weekend in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur.

China itself needs unimpeded passage in the body of water more than any other country does, and maintaining peace and stability has been the overriding consideration of its South China Sea policy. “India hopes that all parties to the disputes in the South China Sea will abide by the guidelines on the implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, and redouble efforts for early adoption of a Code of Conduct on the basis of consensus”, Modi said.

However, over the years, China has claimed most of the South China Sea, of which Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims. Beijing’s overt moves to develop the islets – and apparently even adding an artificial island – have not only inflamed tensions in Southeast Asia but also drawn the hostile attention of the United States and, by extension, the reproachful eye of Russian Federation. She then stressed the need for member states to send a clear message to the North.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said countries with large populations of Muslims, including Russia, should unite to fight against Islamic State.

Medvedev said “it is now clear we can only fight this threat by bringing our forces together and by working through such global institutions as the United Nations”.

“We now have to ensure that we truly create a single market and production base with freer movement of goods and services with common standards, far greater connectivity and removal of barriers”, Najib said.