China the ‘real victim’ in South China Sea dispute
Print Edition
CHINA has shown “great restraint” in the South China Sea by not seizing islands occupied by other countries, even though it could have, a senior diplomat said yesterday.
China’s Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin made the comments at a news briefing in Beijing ahead of two regional summits where the disputed waterway is likely to be a hot topic.
China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have overlapping claims in the South China Sea, but China is the “real victim” as it has had “dozens” of its islands and reefs in the Nansha Islands illegally occupied by three of the claimants, Liu said.
He did not name the three, but all claimants except Brunei have military fortifications in the Nansha archipelago.
“The Chinese government has the right and the ability to recover the islands and reefs illegally occupied by neighboring countries,” Liu said.
“But we haven’t done this. We have maintained great restraint with the aim to preserve peace and stability.”
Tensions over the sea are set to be discussed at the East Asia Summit in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur this week.
While not on the agenda of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit tomorrow and Thursday in Manila, the issue is likely to be discussed on the sidelines. President Xi Jinping is in Manila for the APEC meeting, while Premier Li Keqiang will represent China at the East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur. United States President Barack Obama will attend both meetings.
Liu said China does not want the South China Sea to be the focus of the East Asia Summit, but said the subject will be hard to avoid and that some countries will raise it.
China’s reclamation work and the building of three air fields on artificial islands in the Nansha archipelago was not about militarization, he said, adding that too much attention had been placed on the length of the airstrips.
“Actually, the larger they are, the more civilian benefits they will bring,” the official said.
Liu also repeated Beijing’s standard line that while China’s building work was for defense, its main focus was civilian.
“China is building facilities such as lighthouses, while protecting the environment,” he said, adding that the focus of the East Asia Summit should be development.
“Hyping the South China Sea issue is not conducive to cooperation,” he said.
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