Centrum Stosunków Międzynarodowych - 27 July 2016: China has criticized the joint statement of the United States, Japan and Australia for the South China Sea

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi criticized the joint trilateral statement by the US, Japan and Australia concerning the South China Sea. Earlier the US, Australia, and Japan expressed concern about territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Before that, the foreign ministers of the countries of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) took traditional annual joint communiqué in which the South China Sea has been dedicated to only a small section. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the meeting with the participation of the Foreign Ministers of the ASEAN countries and China was "very friendly and harmonious", which resulted in a joint statement containing the consensus of the parties to respect regional order.

"However, unfortunately, US, Japan, and Australia issued a joint statement. It continues to promote the problem of the South China Sea, it exaggerates the problem of regional tensions, and the China was selected as the target of criticism. Based on the fact that an application has already caused some impact, China is sure to respond as necessary ", - said the head of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

According to Wang Yi, on the one hand, the countries of the region decisively strengthen cooperation, reduce the degree of expected around the issue of the South China Sea, on the other hand, "is a tripartite statement still provokes increased tensions." In addition, according to the Foreign Minister of China, countries in the region are going to stay away from the sea arbitration, considering this question a bilateral issue between Beijing and Manila, "but the statement of the three countries are still trying hard to fill the legal force of the so-called decision of the arbitration."

"This declaration of three countries was published not timely, dissonant with the developments in the situation. This statement does not correspond to the request of the peoples of the region to reduce tensions around the issue of the South China Sea. This statement ... does not correspond to the constructive role to be played by countries outside the region", - said Wang Yi.” Now is the time to consider you as defenders of the world or the creators of the chaos?", - added the Chinese minister.

In January 2013, the Philippines unilaterally appealed to international arbitration to resolve some of the issues around the territorial dispute in the South China Sea. China initially refused to take part in the proceedings as it considers a unilateral claim illegal and insisted that the court has no jurisdiction to consider the question, which relates to the territorial dispute. The Philippines declare that they have tried repeatedly to resolve the dispute through negotiations with China, but they failed, therefore Manila was forced to go to arbitration.