Beijing Resists Sea Debate During East Asia Summit
BEIJING—China and the U.S. appear to be heading for another confrontation over the disputed waters of the South China Sea during this week's East Asia summit—the first to be attended by a U.S. president—in Bali, Indonesia.
Beijing made it clear on Tuesday that it did not want to discuss any aspect of the South China Sea—where its claims overlap with those of Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei—at the two-day summit, beginning Friday.
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The USS George Washington conducted operations in the South China Sea in August en route to Vietnam.
.The White House, however, said later that the subject would come up in discussions on maritime security—a key concern for the U.S. as it seeks to re-assert its influence in Asia in the face of China's more robust diplomacy and maritime activities in the South China Sea.
Meanwhile, as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in the Philippines, the government there repeated its call—already rejected by Beijing—for a meeting among claimants to discuss creating a "zone of peace" by clearly defining disputed and undisputed areas.
The statements highlight the tensions that will form the backdrop for talks Friday and Saturday among leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean, and eight other countries: the U.S., China, India, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Australia and New Zealand.
The broader group's forum is known as the East Asia Summit.
China is keen to resist any attempts by the U.S. to get more deeply involved in the South China Sea issue, as Beijing has long advocated addressing territorial disputes there with each of the claimants one by one
Beijing made it clear on Tuesday that it did not want to discuss any aspect of the South China Sea—where its claims overlap with those of Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei—at the two-day summit, beginning Friday.
Enlarge Image
CloseAssociated Pres
The USS George Washington conducted operations in the South China Sea in August en route to Vietnam.
.The White House, however, said later that the subject would come up in discussions on maritime security—a key concern for the U.S. as it seeks to re-assert its influence in Asia in the face of China's more robust diplomacy and maritime activities in the South China Sea.
Meanwhile, as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in the Philippines, the government there repeated its call—already rejected by Beijing—for a meeting among claimants to discuss creating a "zone of peace" by clearly defining disputed and undisputed areas.
The statements highlight the tensions that will form the backdrop for talks Friday and Saturday among leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean, and eight other countries: the U.S., China, India, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Australia and New Zealand.
The broader group's forum is known as the East Asia Summit.
China is keen to resist any attempts by the U.S. to get more deeply involved in the South China Sea issue, as Beijing has long advocated addressing territorial disputes there with each of the claimants one by one
