By Ankit Panda
According to a Chinese statement, the U.S. and India should play no role in resolving South China Sea disputes.
On Wednesday, China condemned the recent United States-India joint statement which called for countries to respect the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a media brief that China’s “position is that the dispute in the South China Sea should be resolved by countries directly concerned through negotiations and consultations. Any third party should not be involved in this.” Hong made the remark in response to a question about the U.S.-India joint statement. The U.S.-India joint statement was released on September 30; the Chinese foreign ministry’s late reaction is due to the week-long National Day holiday that begins on October 1.
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