China accuses US of using SCS to stir up trouble
CHINA accused the United States of using the South China Sea (SCS) dispute to “stir up trouble and drive a wedge” for its own geopolitical interests.
The Chinese Embassy in Manila issued this statement after US Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro warned that any aggressor violating the sovereignty of other countries within the Southeast Asian region risks punitive counter action.
China, strongly deplored and firmly rejected Del Toro’s remarks saying the latter’s accusations were unfounded and maliciously smeared China by trying to inflate the “China Threat”.
“In an attempt to preserve its hegemony, the US keeps intensifying power projection in this region, and deliberately seeks to widen differences and provoke tensions, undermining the legitimate rights and interests of coastal countries and the normal order at sea,” the Chinese embassy said.
“The South China Sea is not a “hunting ground” for countries outside the region, still less should it be a “wrestling ground” for big powers,” the statement said.
Interviewed by the Associated Press, Del Toro also said that China has repeatedly intruded sovereign waters of its neighboring countries, violating international law.
The US has repeatedly said that any attack against Philippine forces in the disputed waters will trigger its commitment under the 1951 U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty.
In the same statement, the Embassy said “The Philippines follows an independent foreign policy. We believe that the country and its people have the wisdom to make the judgement and choice that best suit their interests and stand on the side of people’s desire for peace and the trend of the times.”
Beijing also stressed that parties in the SCS dispute are exercising restraint and keeping their differences and disputes in proper place as prescribed by the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).
“This has created a favorable environment and important underpinning for the development and prosperity of the countries and the well-being of the peoples in the region,” it said.
China along with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are working on a “Code of Conduct” (COC) in the South China Sea in an attempt to manage tensions between countries with respective claims.
