Antony Blinken
Vientiane, Laos: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told leaders of Southeast Asian countries on Friday that the US is concerned about Beijing’s “increasingly dangerous and unlawful” activities in the disputed South China Sea. Blinken pledged during ASEAN’s annual summit that the US will continue to maintain freedom of navigation in the vital maritime trade route.
America made its stand clear
Blinken, who was attending the conference on behalf of President Joe Biden, said in his opening address at the US-ASEAN summit, “We are deeply concerned about China’s increasingly dangerous and illegal activities in the South China Sea, which are causing people to Injuries have been caused, ships of ASEAN countries have been damaged and commitments related to peaceful resolution of disputes have been violated.” “The United States will continue to support freedom of navigation and freedom of overflight in the Indo-Pacific region,” he said. The US has no claims on the South China Sea, but has deployed naval ships and fighter planes to patrol the area to challenge China’s claims.
Know China’s claim
The meeting with Blinken of the leaders of the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) comes after a series of violent confrontations at sea between China and ASEAN members Philippines and Vietnam, raising concerns that China’s increasingly aggressive actions in the waterways could escalate into full-scale conflict. China claims almost the entire sea, while ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei as well as Taiwan also have their own claims over it.
What has China done?
About a third of global trade passes through the sea, which is also rich in fish, gas and oil. Beijing has refused to accept a 2016 international arbitration ruling by a UN-affiliated court in The Hague that invalidated China’s sweeping claims. Not only this, China has started construction and militarization on the islands under its control. (AP)
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