Manila: Beijing urged the member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) on Tuesday to unite and “say no” to outside forces seeking to interfere in the South China Sea dispute, in an apparent swipe at the US ahead of a regional summit. Wang said warming relations between Beijing and Manila had helped ensure stability in the South China Sea, where rival claims have long made it one of Asia’s potential military flashpoints. “If there are still some non-regional forces or forces in the region that don’t want to see stability in the South China Sea and they still want to stir up trouble in the South China Sea, we need to stand together and say no to them together,” Wang told reporters. Washington has repeatedly sent warships close to Chinese-occupied islands in the sea in recent years, triggering angry responses from Beijing. Duterte has downplayed Philippines’ dispute with China, declining to use a favourable ruling from a United Nations (UN)-backed tribunal in 2016 on the issue to pressure Beijing.

Source: Mint July 25, 2017 11:37 UTC