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Top US and Chinese officials exchanged warnings against stoking regional tensions during a meeting in Beijing Wednesday, after China became embroiled in security rows with American allies Japan and the Philippines.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, making the first such trip by someone in his role since 2016, and Chinese top diplomat Wang Yi met in Beijing for talks that were meant to smooth over relations.
But after their meeting, state media reported that Wang cautioned Washington against supporting the Philippines in the disputed South China Sea.
“The United States must not use bilateral treaties as an excuse to undermine China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, nor should it support or condone the Philippines’ actions of infringement,” Wang told
Sullivan, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
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Sullivan, who is US President Joe Biden’s most senior security aide, doubled down on Washington’s pledges to defend its regional partners.
“Mr Sullivan reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to defending its Indo-Pacific allies,” the White House said in a readout of their meeting.
Sullivan also “expressed concern about the PRC’s destabilizing actions against lawful Philippine maritime operations in the South China Sea”, it said, using an acronym for the People’s Republic of China.
Sullivan landed in the Chinese capital on Tuesday for a three-day trip, saying on arrival he looked forward to “a very productive round of conversations” with foreign minister Wang.
The visit follows a summit between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping in California in November 2023, and comes just over two months before elections in the United States.
But the meeting was shadowed by Washington’s allies Japan and the Philippines blaming China in the past week for raising regional tensions.
Beijing said on Monday it had taken “control measures” against two Philippine Coast Guard ships that “illegally” entered an area of disputed reefs and waters.
Manila said the Chinese vessels had prevented Philippine ships from resupplying their own coast guard vessels in the area, blasting the move as “aggressive” and calling Beijing the “biggest disrupter” of peace in Southeast Asia.
According to CCTV, Wang emphasised to Sullivan that “China is firmly committed to safeguarding its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights over the South China Sea islands”.
Tokyo meanwhile accused Beijing of violating its airspace on Monday, with a two-minute incursion by a surveillance aircraft off the Danjo Islands in the East China Sea. -REUTERS