China warns US over sovereignty
Print Edition
PRESIDENT Xi Jinping warned the United States that China would not accept violations of its sovereignty in the name of freedom of navigation — a reference to air and naval patrols the US has conducted within China’s territorial waters.
In his talks with US President Barack Obama on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit in Washington on Thusday, Xi also reaffirmed that China respects and safeguards the freedom of navigation and overflight other countries are entitled to under international law.
China, he stressed, is resolute both in defending its sovereignty and related rights in the South China Sea and in safeguarding peace and stability in the region and sticks to the principle that such disputes should be settled in a peaceful way by relevant claimants through direct consultations and negotiations.
Xi told Obama that he hoped the United States would “strictly” abide by its commitment not to take a position on sovereignty issues and instead play a constructive role to maintain peace and stability.
“The hope is that all parties will correctly view and handle the South China Sea and adopt an objective and impartial attitude ... particularly countries outside this region,” China’s Assistant Foreign Minister Zheng Zeguang told a news briefing.
Xi and Obama agreed to step up cooperation to ensure nuclear security worldwide and to do more on cyber security. They also agreed to continue to work on a bilateral investment treaty.
But Zheng made clear that China and the US remained at odds over the contested South China Sea and over US missile defense plans following North Korea’s recent nuclear and rocket tests.
Zheng said Xi told Obama that China was “firmly opposed” to US plans to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, missile defense system in South Korea.
“Such deployment will undermine China’s security interests and will affect this region’s strategic balance,” he said.
The US and South Korea began talks in February on possible THAAD deployment. China backed tough new sanctions on North Korea following its nuclear and rocket tests, but complains that THAAD has a range that would extend far beyond the Korean Peninsula and into China.
Also on Thursday, China and the US — the world’s two largest carbon emitters — reaffirmed their commitment to jointly tackling climate change ahead of plans to ink an ambitious deal later this month.
According to a joint presidential statement, the two countries will sign the Paris Agreement on April 22, after the historic pact on climate change was adopted in December during the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties in France.
China and the US, working together and with others, have played a critical role in crafting the agreement, which was adopted by the 196 Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The agreement sets a target of holding the global average rise in temperature below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and preferably below 1.5 degrees.
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