30 April 2016

News Story: Russian FM says external forces should not interfere in South China Sea issue

BEIJING, April 29 (Xinhua) -- External forces should not interfere in the South China Sea issue, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday.

Lavrov, who is in Beijing to attend the fifth Foreign Ministers' Meeting of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), and for an official visit to China, made the remarks during talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

Lavrov said Russia holds that the South China Sea issue should be resolved peacefully through political means, such as negotiations between the parties directly concerned, while external forces should refrain from interfering.

The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and international laws, including the agreements reached between China and ASEAN, are the legal frameworks that should be followed, said Lavrov.

The two foreign ministers agreed that the South China Sea disputes should be resolved through negotiations between parties directly concerned on the basis of respecting historical facts and international laws.

Read the full story at Xinhua