Pressure on Beijing over building drive in South China Sea

KUALA LUMPUR // China came under mounting pressure Wednesday over its land reclamation in the South China Sea with both the US and Japan criticising it for militarising the disputed waters.

John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, raised the issue during a meeting with China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, on the sidelines of the annual 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) diplomatic gathering in Malaysia that has been dominated by tensions over the Chinese moves.

“Secretary Kerry reiterated his concern about rising tensions over disputed claims in the South China Sea and China’s large-scale reclamation, construction and militarisation of features there,” a senior State Department official said.

“He encouraged China, along with the other claimants, to halt problematic actions in order to create space for diplomacy.”

Beijing has sparked alarm by building military posts on some of the reefs in the seas to try to shore up its territorial claims.

The United States and South East Asian nations have called for a halt to such activities, but China has refused.

South East Asian foreign ministers warned Tuesday after they met in Kuala Lumpur that China’s moves were raising regional tensions, with the Philippines slamming Beijing’s “unilateral and aggressive activities”.

Minoru Kiuchi, Japan’s envoy to the talks, told delegates to the forum on Wednesday he had “deep concern over ... large-scale land reclamation, the construction of outposts and their use for military purposes”, according to a Japanese government statement.

Tokyo is locked in a confrontation of its own with Beijing over disputed islands in the East China Sea.

Beijing claims control over nearly the entire South China Sea, a key shipping route thought to hold oil and gas reserves.

Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei — all Asean members — also have various claims as does Taiwan, many of which overlap.

China’s neighbours have increasingly complained at what is seen as mounting violations by Beijing of a regional pledge not to take actions that could stoke conflict.

Before their meeting, Mr Kerry had said he and Mr Wang would also discuss a range of bilateral issues including plans for a September US visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping and China’s “great cooperation” on the recent Iran nuclear deal.

A US diplomat also said Mr Kerry would meet his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, later Wednesday to “discuss a range of issues of mutual concern”.

They met in Doha on Monday alongside the Saudi foreign minister Adel Sl Jubeir, where the ongoing civil war in Syria topped the agenda.

After that meeting, Lavrov hit out at an announcement by Washington that it was willing to take extra measures to defend US-allied fighters in Syria, describing the plan as “counterproductive”.

Kerry, in a meeting Wednesday with ASEAN foreign ministers, said Washington shared their desire “to preserve peace and stability in the South China Sea”.

He stressed the need to maintain the security of sea lanes and fishing grounds and to settle disputes peacefully.

Beijing has insisted it will not discuss the South China Sea during formal meetings at the forum, saying disagreements must be handled on a bilateral basis between rival claimants.

Diplomats and analysts say this stance is aimed at preventing ASEAN from presenting a more united front.

A Washington-based think-tank said this week Beijing could be preparing to build a second airstrip on an artificial island.

China is already building a 3,000-metre (10,000-foot) runway on Fiery Cross reef, which could ultimately be used for combat operations, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

* Agence France-Presse