China says United States has gone beyond freedom of navigation to ‘test’ Beijing

China said today that freedom of navigation and overflight over the South China Sea has never been a problem and reiterated that disputes over territory in the strategic waterway should be resolved by the countries concerned.

Washington has repeatedly warned that traffic through the South China Sea, a key conduit for world trade, could be threatened by China’s moves.

Li said a few countries outside the region were conducting a high-profile intervention.

But despite that, the region as a whole is increasingly dependent on China’s economic clout and the statement did not directly criticize Beijing’s continued building of artificial islands and other features in the sea, one of the world’s most important commercial shipping corridors that is also believed to hold rich oil and mineral deposits.

“For the sake of regional stability, claimants should halt reclamation, new construction, and militarisation of disputed areas”, Obama said Saturday.

President Barack Obama says relations between the US and Singapore are strong and that the Asian nation is an excellent worldwide partner.

During his four-day stay in Malaysia, he is also to pay his first official visit to the country since taking office in March 2013.

Kuala Lumpur: Disputes on territorial claims over the South China Sea should be resolved through peaceful negotiations and in accordance with worldwide laws, said Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak on the sidelines of the 27th Asean summit.

He said out of a few 1,000 islands, reefs and atolls in the vast sea, China has occupied only seven small islands and reefs in waters under its jurisdiction.

Following the signing ceremony, ASEAN leaders met with eight others from Asia and the Pacific for the annual East Asia summit: the United States, China, Japan, South Korea, India, Russia, Australia and New Zealand.

Earlier this month, U.S. B-52 bombers flew near Chinese artificial islands in the area, signalling Washington’s determination to challenge Beijing over the disputed sea. Economic community Most of the leaders arrived from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Manila. “The perpetrators of these cowardly and barbaric acts do not represent any race, religion or creed, nor should we allow them to claim to do so”, Najib said in his opening speech at the ASEAN summit. He said predominantly Islamic countries such as Malaysia have a duty to expose as lies the “ideology propagated by these extremists that is the cause of this sadistic violence”. “We will continue to root out terrorist networks”. “Now we have to assure freer movements and removal of barriers that hinder growth and investment”.

“Let’s preserve peace and stability”, was all Li said in reply as he continued to walk away, surrounded by bodyguards.