China warns about meddling as envoys gather for summit
Senior Beijing official says Asean talks must focus on economic ties and not regional disputes
China would seek to prevent countries from outside Asia Pacific from “interfering” in regional cooperation, a senior Beijing official said on Saturday on the sidelines of the Asean summit in the Laotian capital of Vientiane.
Deputy Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin also hinted that Beijing would try to ensure the focus of the talks was on economic partnerships.
The Asean meeting, which began on Thursday and runs until Tuesday, is the first gathering of top diplomats since The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled on July 12 that China did not have historic rights to the South China Sea. Five countries plus Taiwan have competing claims in the waters.
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“We are now facing challenges in ensuring economic prosperity and growth in the region … We have to prevent conflicts among countries in the region from affecting our cooperation and prevent interference by extra-regional countries from disturbing our cooperation,” Liu told journalists on the sideline of the meeting.
“There are too many major powers in the region ... While the US is not a regional country, it has strong influence in Asia,” Liu said.
Beijing would consider hosting a new round of negotiations to formulate a code of conduct for the South China Sea next month, he said.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to arrive in Vientiane on Sunday and take part in talks that include US Secretary of State John Kerry, the Philippines’ Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay and Japan’s Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida.
